
Class P14I1 
Rook .G^-S^iL. 



i 



"The. 
HISTORY 



OF 



SOUTH AMERICA^ 



THE DISCOVERY OF THE NEW WORLD BY COLUMBUS, 



THE CONQUEST OF PERU BY PIZARRO; 

INTERSPERSED WITH AMUSING ANECDOTES, AND CONTAINING A MINUTE 

DESCRIPTION OF THE MANNERS AND CU3T0BIS, DRESS, 

ORNAMENTS, AND xMODE OF WARFARE OP 

THE INDIANS. 

BY WILLIAM GRIMSHAW, 

Author of a History of the United States ; a History of England, and 
of France ; the Life of Napoleon, &c. 




NEW- YORK: 

COLLINS & HANNAY, No. 230 PEARL STREET, 

AND COLLINS & Co. No. 117 MAIDEN LANE. 

Stereotyped by L. Johnson. 

1830. 



THE 

HISTORY 

OF 

SOUTH AMERICA, 

CHAPTER I. 

PRELIMINARY OBSERVATIONS.— -DISCOVERY OF MADEIRA, THE 

CAPE DE VERD ISLANDS, AND THE AZORES. BIOGRAPHY OF 

COLUMBUS. 

The omnipotent ruler of the universe has developed, with 
admirable economy, the secrets of the material world. Had 
a full knowledge of its organization been imparted, at the 
time of the earliest formation of society, the blessings of life 
would have been greatly lessened. Man would have been 
deprived of one of the chief sources of earthly happiness, — 
the daily employment of his mental faculties, in contemplat- 
ing the inexhaustible variety of elements of which matter is 
composed, and the vast extent of space which has gradually 
been unfolded. Certain periods in the revolution of time, 
have been signally prolific in extraordinary events. The 
fifteenth century is distinguished by two remarkable occur- 
rences, — the invention of the modern art of printing, and the 
discovery of the great western continent, now universally 
called America. The former was the means of spreading 
over civilized Europe, the knowledge already accumulated by 
the human mind, and of exciting men to further inquiries 
after tnith, and to further examination of the principles of 
civil and religious liberty ; the latter opened a field for the 
exercise of individual and national enterprise, and afforded an 
asylum to all who preferred liberty of opinion in a foreign 
country, to mental slavery in their native land. 

The spirit of geographical researcli was unusually excited 
by a wonderful discovery, — the polarity of the magnet, which 
eventuated in the construction of the mariner's compass, and 
jjiipre powerfully influenced navigation, than all the efforts of 

9 



10 raSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

preceding ages. The precise epoch of this discovery, we 
cannot satisfactorily ascertain. It is generally attributed to^ 
Gioia, a Neapolitan, and dated in the year 1302; but the 
supposition appears erroneous. Guyot de Provins, in a poem 
written about the year 1180, plainly alludes to the magnetic 
needle being then in common use ; and the writings of many 
other authors coincide in establishing its previous introduc- 
tion, and consequently in depriving the Neapolitan of any 
honour, further than having increased its utility by fixing it 
on a pivot, and enclosing it in a box.* Seamen were now 
enabled to abandon their timid course along the shore, and 
fearlessly to launch into the wide bosom of the ocean. The 
first appearance of increasing confidence, may be dated from 
the voyages of the Spaniards, to the Canary Islands. These, 
which many centuries before the Christian era, had been 
visited by the Carthaginians, were again discovered, about 
the middle of the fourteenth century, by the seamen of Spain ; 
but the genius of naval enterprise was not, at this period, fully 
excited ; as navigation seems not to have then extended be- 
yond the limits which circumscribed it before the downfall 
of the Roman empire. 

The next considerable effort was made by the seamen of 
Portugal. In 1420, they sailed to Madeira; (to which they 
were directed by its previous accidental discovery by an En- 
glishman ;) in 1446, they discovered the Cape de Verd islands ; 
and in 1449, the Azores. When prosecuting their researches 
along the shores of Africa, they ventured to cross the equi- 
noctial line ; equally pleased and astonished, on finding that 
region not only habitable, but populous and fertile. As they 
advanced towards the south, they found, that, instead of ex- 
tending, according to the doctrine of Ptolemy, it appeared to 
contract its breadth, towards the east. This unexpected dis- 
covery induced them to credit the ancient Phenician voyages 
around Africa, which had long been deemed fabulous ; and 
led them to conceive hopes, that, by following the same track,, 
they might arrive at the East Indies, and engross, for a while, 
a traffic which had always been so eagerly desired. The 
attainment of this object was entrusted to Bartholomew Diaz., 
After advancing a thousand miles further than any of his pre- 
decessors, exposed to violent tempests, mutinies, and famines, 
this experienced officer, distinguished alike for his sagacity, 
fortitude, and perseverance, at last beheld that lofty promon- 

* The latitude was then taken by an mstrument called the astrolabe. 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. H 

tory which terminates Africa on the south. But to behold it, 
was all tliut he could accomplish: the violence of the winds, 
and the- turbulent spirit of his men, compelled him to return* 
The vast lentrth of this voyage, with the furious storms 
encountered by Diaz, so alarmed and intimidated tiic Portu* 
guese, that some time was required to prepare their minds 
for the prosecution and accom()lishment of their ^^reat de- 
sign — tlie passing of that southern promontory, called, by the 
king of Portugal, the Cape of Good Hope. In the interval, 
an event occurred, no less extraordinary than unexpected, 
which forms the subject of this history — the discovery of a 
new continent, situated in the west. 

The honour of accomplishing that sublime exploit was 
gained by Christopher Columbus. This illustrious navigator 
was born at Genoa, in the year 1435. He was the eldest of 
four children, having two brothers, I5artholomcw and Diego, 
and one sister, of whom nothing is now known, except that 
she was married to a person in obscure life, named Ciiacomo 
Bovarello. He was well (]ualili('d, both by nature and edu- 
cation, to become distinguished on the cx^ean. Ardently in- 
clined towards that element, ho went to sea at the age of 
fourteen; and, in a few years, visited the coast of Iceland, and 
advanced several degrees within the polar circle. He once 
commanded a vessel of war belonging to the king of Naples, 
and was employcnl in a perilous enterprise — to cut out a gal- 
ley from the i)ort of Tunis. There is an interval of many 
years, during which we have only a few shado\vy traces of 
Columbus. He is supj)osed to have been then principally 
engaged in the Mediterranean, and the Levant; sometimes 
in voyages of commerce; sometimes, in warlike contests be- 
tween the Italian states ; at other times, in pious and pre- 
datory expeditions against the Mahometans. After a va- 
riety of adventures, serving more to enlarge his knowledge 

than to increase his fortune, he went to Lisbon, a 
1470. city in which there lived many of his countrymen, 

and where, having married, he fixed his residence. 
He was then in the full vigour of life, and of an engaging 
appearance. He was tall, well-formed, muscular, and of an 
elevated and dignified demeanour. His visage was long, his 
complexion fair and freckled, and inclined to ruddy ; his nose 
aquiline, his eyes light-gray and sparkling, and his whole 
countenance had an air of authority. His hair, in his youth- 
ful days, was of a light colour, but care and trouble soon 
turned it gray, and at thirty years of age, it was entirely 



\o lllSTOUY OF SOUTH AAIJvIUCA. 

white. He was moderate in his dipt, and simple in his ap- 
parel; cliKjiKMit in discourse; entrajrino- antl affable with 
stranj^ers, and of an aiuiahlenrss and suavity in domestic 
life, wliicli stroMj^'ly attaclied liis hi)Ust'liold to his person. 

The matrimonial alliance forme«l by Columbus, did not 
weaken his early attachment to the sea. His wife was a 
dauirhter of Bartholomew de Perc^trcllo, who had been one 
o{ the most distin^juished navijrators und<'r l'rin<-e Henry, 
and had first carried the Portu^juese to Madeira. Cohunbus 
obtained possession of his journals; made a voya^re to Ma- 
deira, and tradeil, for many years, with the Canaries, the 
Azores, the coast of Guinea, and all the other |)laces dis- 
covereti by tin; TortUL^uese on the continent of Africa. 

The preat object oi' the Portu«rucse, at that period, as al- 
ready narrated, was to discover a passage to the East Indies. 
But they searched for it only by steerint^ towards the south, 
in the hope of accomplishin<^ their wishes by turning,' to the 
cast, when they had reached the southern extremity of Africa; 
a course of so trreat extent, that a voyage to India nmst have 
a})peareMl efjually arduous and. uncertain. Stinmlated by this 
reilection, after com})aring the observations of modern navi- 
gators with the conjectures of the ancients, Colund)US at 
length concluded, that by sailing directly towards the west, 
across the Atlantic Ocean, new countries, which it was likely 
formed a part of the great continent of Asia, must infallibly 
be discovered. The sj)herical figure of the earth was known ; 
its matjfuilude, with some degree of accuracy, ascertained ; Sir 
John Mandtiville, a celebrated English traveller, had already, 
from astronomical demonstration, asserted that it might be 
circumnavigated. It was evident that the continents of Eu- 
rope, Asia, and Africa, formed but a small j)ortion of the ter- 
raqueous globe; it seemed rational, that the vast, unexplored 
space, was not entirely covered with water, but was occupied, 
in some measure, by countries fit for the residence of man. 
These deductions were not drawn merely from conjecture. 
Timber, artificially carved, had been seen floating, at an un- 
usual distance, in the ocean : to the west of the Madeira isles, 
there had been found another piece, fashioned in the same 
manner, brought by the same wind; and canes, of an enor- 
mous size, resembling those described by ancient naturalists, 
as |)eculiar to the Indi«s. Trees had been frecjuenll, driven 
upon the Azores; and at one tim(> the dead bodit.'s of two 
men, differing in their features from the inhabitants of Eu- 
ro])e, Africa, or Asia. 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 13 

Confiding fully in the truth of his system, Columbus was 
impatient to prove it by experiment. But it was necessary 
to procure the patronage and aid of a sovereign state. As 
long absence had not abated his affection for his native coun- 
try, he wished that Genoa should enjoy the advantages likely 
to accrue from his ingenuity and perseverance, and accord- 
ingly submitted his ideas to the senate. He had, however, 
resided so many years in foreign countries, that the Genoese 
were unacquainted with his character; and unable, rightly to 
comprehend the principles on which he founded his expecta- 
tions of success, they rejected his proposals, as the offspring 
of a disordered imagination. 

The perseverance of Columbus was not yet exhausted. 
Though his sensibility was wounded, his resolution was not 
shaken by this repulse. He made his next overture to the 
king of Portugal ; who, he considered had the second claim 
to his services, by reason of his having so long resided in his 
dominions. John listened to his proposals with attention, 
and treated them with respect. He appointed three eminent 
cosmographers to examine the merits of his interesting plan : 
but these individuals, after drawing from Columbus the mi- 
nutest particulars of his design, basely conspired to defraud the 
ingenious seaman of his expected glory, and the king adopted 
their perfidious counsel. A caravel was despatched, under 
the ostensible pretext of carrying provisions to the Cape de 
Verd islands, but with private instructions to pursue the route 
designated in the papers of Columbus. Having departed 
from these islands, the caravel steered westward, for several 
days. The weather became stormy, and the pilots having no 
zeal to animate them to persevere, and seeing continually 
before them only an immense waste of rolling waters, lost ail 
courage to proceed. They returned to the Cape de Verd 
islands, and thence to Lisbon, execrating the project, as ex- 
travagant in its extentj and irrational in its conception. 

Columbus resolved to hold no further intercourse with a 
sovereign and people capable of so flagrant treachery. He 
proceeded instantly to Spain, that he might lay his plan be- 
fore Ferdinand and Isabella ; at the same time, increasing the 
chances of success, by sending his brother Bartholomew to 
England, in order to negotiate with Henry VH., who was re- 
ported to be one of the most sagacious and enterprising mo- 
narchs of the age. 

Though Spain was then engaged in a serious war with 
Granada, the last of the Moorish kingdoms in that country^ 
B 



14 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

yet Ferdinand and Isabella treated Columbus with so much 
regard, as to submit the consideration of his plan to a confi- 
dential minister, Ferdinand de Talavera. It would be tedious 
and uninteresting to enumerate all the objections offered to 
his scheme. Some insisted that he would find the ocean of 
infinite extent ; others, that if he persisted in steering to the 
west, beyond a certain point, the convex figure of the earth 
would prevent his return ; and that he must inevitably perish, 
in the vain attempt to open a communication between the 
two opposite hemispheres, which nature had for ever dis- 
joined.* 

- . gg More than seven years had elapsed, since the date 
of his first application to Ferdinand and Isabella, when 
Columbus, mortified by the bitterest disappointment, and 
feeling the most painful solicitude on account of not having 
received any information from his brother Bartholomew, 
withdrew from the Spanish court, intending to visit England, 
himself, as his last resource. His departure was prevented 
by a fortunate occurrence. About that time, Granada sur- 
rendered, and Ferdinand and Isabella, in triumphal pomp, 
took possession of a city, the reduction of which extirpated a 
foreign enemy from the heart of their dominions. Quintan- 
ella and Santangel, the vigilant and discerning patrons of 
Columbus, now made another effort in behalf of their inge- 
nious friend, and their arguments, urged at so favourable a 
juncture, were successful. The doubts and fears of Isabella 
were dispelled; she ordered Columbus to be recalled, and 
declared her resolution of employing him on his own terms. 
On the 17th of April, a capitulation or contract with Colum- 
bus was signed ; the chief articles of which, were ; " 1. Ferdi- 
nand and Isabella, as sovereigns of the ocean, constituted Co- 
lumbus their high admiral, in all the seas, islands, and conti- 
nents^ which should be discovered by his industry ; and stipulat- 
ed that he and his heirs for ever should enjoy the ofiice, with 
the same powers and prerogatives which belonged to the high 
admiralof Castile, within the limits of his jurisdiction. 2. They 
appointed Columbus their viceroy, in all the islands and con- 
tinents which he should discover ; but if, for the better adminis- 
tration of affairs, it should hereafter be necessary to establish 
a separate governor in any of those countries, they authorised 
Columbus to name three persons, of whom they would choose 

* Thus far, the narrative is substantially taken from the History of the 
United States, by the author of this work. 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 15 

one for that office ; and the dignity of viceroy, with all its 
immunities, was likewise to be hereditary in the family of 
Colmnbus. 3. They granted to Columbus and his heirs for 
ever, the tenth of the free profits accruing from the produc-. 
tions and commerce of the countries which he should discover. 
4. They declared, that if any controversy or law-suit arose, 
with respect to any mercantile transaction, in the countries 
which should be discovered, it should be determined by the 
sole authority of Columbus, or of judges to be appointed by 
him." 

Though the name of Ferdinand appears conjoined with 
that of Isabella, in this transaction, his distrust of Columbus 
was still so violent, that he refused to have any participation 
in the enterprise, as king of Arragon. As the whole ex- 
pense of the expedition was to be defrayed by the crown of 
Castile, Isabella reserved for her subjects of that kingdom, of 
which she was s^g^ereign in her own right, the exclusive 
benefits which miffht arise from its success. 



CHAPTER 11. 

THE FIRST VOYAGE OF COLUMBUS. 

HE DISCOVERS THE ISLANDS OF ST. SALVADOE, ST. MARY, 
EXUMA, ISABELLA, CUBA, AND HAYTI OR HISPANIOLA. 

Isabella had ordered the ships, of which Columbus was 
to take the command, to be fitted out in the port of Palos, a 
small maritime town in the province of Andalusia. The 
chief of his associates were three brothers, named Pinzon, of 
considerable wealth, and of great experience in naval affairs, 
who were willing to hazard their lives and fortunes in the 
expedition. 

The armament consisted of only three vessels. Two of them 
were light barques, called caravels, not superior to river and 
coasting craft of the present day ; and only one of the three 
vessels was decked. The largest was commanded by Column 
bus, as admiral; who gave it the name of Santa Maria, out 
of respect for the Virgin Mary : the second in burthen, named 
the Pinta, was under the command of Martin Alonzo Pin- 



16 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

zon, his brother Francis being pilot : the third, called the 
Nigna, under the direction of Vincent Yanez Pinzon. This 
little squadron was victualled for twelve months, and had on 
board ninety men, mostly sailors, together with a few adven- 
turers who followed the fortune of Columbus ; and some 
gentlemen of Isabella's court, whom she had appointed to 
accompany him. 

As Columbus was deeply impressed with sentiments of 
religion, he would not set out upon an expedition so hazard- 
ous, and of which one great object was professed to be the 
extension of the Christian faith, without imploring publicly 
the guidance and protection of Heaven. With all the per- 
sons under his command, he marched in solemn procession 
to the monastery of Rabida ; where, after confessing their sins, 
they received the sacrament, and joined in prayers for its 
success. 

The next morning, being Friday, the 3d day of August, 
1492, Columbus set sail, a little before sun-rise. His de- 
parture was witnessed by a vast crowd of spectators, who sent 
up their supplications to Heaven, for the prosperous issue of 
the voyage, which they wished, rather than expected to be 
accomplished. He steered directly for the Canary islands, 
and arrived there v/ithout the occurrence of any accident 
that would deserve notice on any other occasion. But, in a 
voyage of so much solicitude and importance, the most trifling 
incident was an object of attention. The day after she left 
the harbour, the rudder of the Pinta broke loose ; and that 
accident alarmed the superstitious crew, as a certain omen 
of the disastrous issue of the expedition. Even in the short 
voyage to the Canaries, which occupied only about six days, 
the ships were found to be so crazy and ill appointed, as to 
be very inadequate to a navigation expected to be both long 
and full of peril. Columbus refitted them, however, as well 
as circumstances would admit ; and, having obtained a sup- 
ply of fresh provisions, he took his departure from Gomera, 
one of the most westerly of the Canary islands, on the sixth 
of September. 

Here, the voyage of discovery may properly be said to 
begin. Holding his course due west, Columbus immediately 
left the usual track of navigation, and stretched into seas 
unfrequented and unknown. The first day being calm, he 
made lUtle way ; but on the second, he lost sight of the Ca- 
naries ; and many of the sailors, already dejected and dis- 
mayed, when they contemplated the boldness of the und'er^ 



fflSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. X7 

taking, began to beat their breasts and to shed tears, as if 
they were never again to behold land. Columbus comforted 
them with assurances of success, and the prospect of immense 
wealth ; and, happily for himself, as well as for the country 
by which he was employed, he possessed a thorough know- 
ledge of mankind, an insinuating address, a patient perse ve- 
ranc^y a perfect government of his own passions, and the 
talent of acquiring an ascendance over those of other men. 
He regulated every thing by his sole authority ; he superin- 
tended the execution of every order; and, allowing himself 
only a few hours for sleep, he was at all other times on deck. 
The sounding line, or instruments for observation, were con- 
tinually in his hands. He attended to the motions of tides 
and currents, watched the flight of birds, the appearance of 
fishes, of sea- weeds, and of every thing that floated on the 
waves. As the length of the voyage could not fail of alarm- 
ing sailors habituated only to short excursions, Columbus 
endeavoured to conceal from them the real progress of his 
vessel. Though they had run eighteen leagues, on the se- 
cond day after they left Gomera, he reported that they had 
advanced only fifteen ; and he uniformly employed the same 
artifice, during the whole voyage. On the 14th of Septem- 
ber, eight days after his departure from Gomera, the fleet 
was more than two hundred leagues west of the Canary 
islands, at a greater distance from land than any Spaniard 
had ever been before. They were now struck with a pheno- 
menon, no less astonishing than new. Their magnetic needle 
did not point exactly to the polar star, but varied towards the 
west : and, as they proceeded, this variation increased. This 
appearance, now grown familiar to us, though like the po- 
larity of the magnet, it still continues one of the mysteries 
of nature, filled the companions of Columbus with terror. 
They were now in a boundless and unknown ocean ; nature 
itself seemed altered, and the only guide on which they had 
depended, was about to desert them. But Columbus, with 
no less quickness than ingenuity, invented a reason for this 
appearance ; which, thoug-h it did not satisfy himself, seemed 
so rational to them, that it dispelled their fears, or silenced 
their complaints. 

Continuing to steer due west, he came within the region 

of the trade-wind, which blows invariably from east to west, 

between the tropics and a few degrees beyond them, in the 

temperate zones. He advanced before this steady gale, with 

b2 



1$ History of sotJtH amkmca. 

so uniform a rapiditj^, that it was seldom necessary to siiiit a 
sail. When about four hundred leagues to the west of the 
Canaries, he found the sea so covered with weeds, that it 
resembled a meadow of vast extent ; and in some places they 
were so thick, as to retard the motion of the vessels.* This 
strange appearance occasioned new alarm. The sailors 
imagined that they had now arrived at the utmost boundary 
of the navigable ocean ; that these floating weeds would ob- 
struct their further progress, and concealed dangerous rocks, 
or a large tract of land, which had sunk, in that place, by 
some unknown cause. Columbus endeavoured to persuade 
them, that what had alarmed, ought rather to have encouraged 
them, and was to be considered a sign of approaching land. 
At the same time, a brisk gale arose, and carried them for- 
ward. Several birds were seen hovering about the ship, and 
directing their flight towards the west. The desponding 
crew resumed some degree of spirit, and began to entertain 
fresh hopes. 

On the first of October, according to the reckoning of 
Columbus, they were seven-hundred-and-seventy leagues to 
the westward of the Canaries ; but, lest his men should be 
intimidated by the extraordinary length of the navigation, he 
reported that they had proceeded only five-hundred-and-eighty- 
four ; and, fortunately for Columbus, neither his own pilot, 
nor the pilots of the other vessels, had skill sufficient to cor- 
rect this error, and discover the deceit. They had now been 
about twenty-five days at sea : they had proceeded far be- 
yond what former navigators had attempted, or considered 
possible ; the appearances of land had been altogether illu- 
sive, and their prospect of success seemed as distant as ever. 
From secret murmurings, they proceeded to open complaints : 
they contended that it was necessary to think of returning to 
Spain, while their crazy vessels were yet in a condition to 
oppose the waves ; but they expressed their fears that the 
attempt would prove vain, as the wind, which had hitherto 
been so favourable to their course, must render it impossible 
to sail in the opposite direction. All agreed that Columbus 
should be compelled, by force, to adopt a measure on which 
their common safety depended, and some of the more auda- 
cious proposed to throw him into the sea, and report, on their 
arrival in Spain, that he had fallen overboard, while contem- 

* This vegetable substance is now known as the Gulf-weed. 



niSi^ORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 10 

plating the stars, and the signs of the heavens ; a fabrication 
which no one would have either the inclination or the means 
to controvert. 

Columbus was not insensible of his perilous situation. He 
retained, however, entire presence of mind, and affected to be 
ignorant of their machinations. Notwithstanding the agita- 
tion and solicitude of his own mind, he appeared with a cheer- 
ful countenance, like one satisfied with his progress, and 
confident of success. Sometimes, he employed all the arts 
of insinuation to soothe his men : sometimes, he endeavoured 
to work upon their ambition or avarice, by magnificent de- 
scriptions of the fancied wealth which they were about to 
acquire : on other occasions, he assumed the tone of authority, 
and threatened them with vengeance from their sovereign, 
if, by their dastardly behaviour, they should defeat the glo- 
rious object of the voyage. 

His words produced the desired effect. He assuaged their 
angry passions, and allayed their fears. As they proceeded, 
the indications of approaching land seemed more certain, and 
excited hope. The water became so smooth, that the sailors 
amused themselves by swimming about the vessels. Dolphins 
began to abound ; and flying-fish, darting into the air, fell 
upon the decks. The birds began to appear in flocks, di- 
recting their flight towards the south-west. In imitation of 
the Portuguese navigators, who had been guided, in several 
of their discoveries, by the motion of birds, Columbus altered 
his course, from due west, towards that quarter whither they 
pointed their course. But, after proceeding for several days 
in this new direction, without any better success, having 
seen no object, during thirty days, except the sea and the 
arch of heaven, the hopes of his companions subsided, more 
rapidly than they had arisen, their fears renewed with ad- 
ditional force, and in every countenance there appeared im- 
patience, rage, and despair. All sense of subordination was 
lost : the ofi&cers now combined with the private men : they 
assembled tumultuously on the deck, and required him in- 
stantly to return to Europe. Columbus perceived that it 
would be unavailing to have recourse to any of his former arts. 
Having been tried so often, they had lost their effect. It 
became necessary to soothe those passions which he could 
no longer control, and to yield to a torrent too impetuous to 
be checked. He promised solemnly to his men, that, pro- 
vided they would accompany him, and obey his commands 
for three days longer, and during that time land were not 



20 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

discovered, he would then abandon the enterprise, and direct 
his course to Spain. 

This proposition did not appear to the sailors unreasonable. 
They acceded to the conditions proposed. Nor did Colum- 
bus hazard much, in confining himself to a term so short. 
The presages of discovering land, were now so numerous and 
promising, that he deemed them infallible. For some days, 
the sounding-lead had reached the bottom, and the soil which 
adhered to it, indicated the proximity of land. The flocks 
of birds increased, and were composed not only of sea-fowl, 
but also of small birds, of various colours, some of them such 
as sing in the fields, and could not be supposed to fly far 
from shore. Tunny fish played about the tranquil sea, and 
a heron, a pelican, and a duck, were seen, all bound in the 
same direction. The crew of the Pinta observed a green 
fish, of a kind which is found about rocks, also a cane float- 
ing, which seemed to have been newly cut, and likewise a 
piece of timber, artificially carved : the sailors on board the 
Nigna, picked up a branch of a tree with red berries, per- 
fectly fresh : the clouds around the setting sun assumed a 
new appearance : the air had become more mild and warm, 
and, during night, the wind became unequal and variable, as 
if affected by the inequalities of an undulating shore. From 
all these symptoms, Columbus was so confident of being near 
land, that, on the evening of the 11th of October, after pub- 
lic prayers for success, he ordered the sails to be furled, and 
the ships to lie-to ; keeping strict watch, lest they might hap- 
pen to strike upon the shore, in the night. 

During this interval of suspense and expectation, not a head 
was reclined to sleep. All remained on deck, with their 
eyes intently directed towards that quarter, where they hoped 
to discover the land which had been so long the object of 
their desires. Their hopes were at length realized. About 
ten o'clock, Columbus, standing on the forecastle, observed, 
at some distance, a light ; and, at two in the morning, a gun, 
discharged by the Pinta, which had always been a little 
a-head of the other vessels, gave the joyful signal of land ! 

Every man now waited, in all the anguish of uncertainty 
Ti '1 and impatience, for the return of day. As soon as 
Of ^2' '^^orning dawned, all doubts and fears were dispelled. 

^ * ' From every ship, an island was seen, about two 
leagues to the north, the flat and verdant fields of which, 
adorned with lofty woods, and watered by many rivulets, pre- 
sented the appearance of a delightful country. The crew of 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 21 

the Pinta instantly began the Te Deum, as a hymn of thanks- 
giving to God, and were joined by the seamen of the other 
vessels, with transports of congratulation, and tears of joy. 

Seventy days had now elapsed, since Columbus had left 
Paios : six days were occupied in reaching the Canaries ; 
twenty-eight, in refitting his vessels at those islands, and 
thirty-six from the time he took his departure from Gomera, 
until he discovered land. 

The sun had no sooner risen, than all the boats were man- 
ned and armed. They rowed towards the island, with their 
colours displayed, with warlike music, and other military 
pomp. The coast was covered with a multitude of people, 
attracted by the novelty of the spectacle, and expressing 
wonder and astonishment in every gesture. Columbus was 
the first European who set foot in the New World which he 
had discovered. He was splendidly arrayed in scarlet, and 
held in his hand a naked sword. He was followed by his 
men, who, kneeling down, kissed the ground, which they had 
so long desired, but so little expected ever to behold. They 
next erected a crucifix, and prostrated themselves before it, 
returning thanks to Heaven, for the happy issue of the voy- 
age. They then took solemn possession of the country, for 
the crown of Castile and Leon, with all the formality usually 
observed, on similar occasions, by the Portuguese. 

The dress of the Spaniards, the comparative whiteness of 
their skins, their unshorn beards, their arms and armour, 
appeared to the natives strange and surprising: the vast 
machines in which they had traversed the ocean, which 
uttered a dreadful sound resembling thunder, accompanied 
with lightning and smoke, struck them with so much terror, 
that they viewed their new guests as a superior order of 
beings, and concluded that they were the children of the 
Sun, who had descended from the skies. 

The Spaniards were hardly less amazed at the scene now 
before them. Every object was, in many respects, different 
from what they had been accustomed to behold in Europe. 
The inhabitants appeared in the simple innocence of nature, 
entirely naked. Their black hair, long and uncurled, floated 
on their shoulders, or was bound in tresses around their heads. 
They had no beards, a fashion different from what then pre- 
vailed in Europe, where, in every country, the hair was al- 
lowed to grow, either on the upper lip or chin. Their com- 
plexion was of a dusky copper-colour ; their aspect gentle 
nnd timid. Th§ir faces, and several parts of their bodies^ 



22 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

were fantastically painted with glowing colours. They were 
shy at first, through fear, but soon became familiar with the 
Spaniards ; and joyfully received from them coloured caps, 
hawks' bells, glass beads, or other baubles; in return for 
which they gave such provisions as they had, and likewise 
parrots, of which great numbers were domesticated amongst 
them, and some cotton yarn, the only commodity of value 
that they could produce. 

Towards evening, Columbus returned to his caravel. On 
the following morning, before the sun had risen, the shore 
was crowded with the natives, who, having lost all dread 
of what at first had appeared to them monsters of the 
deep, came swimming to the ships ; others were carried in 
light barques, which they called canoes, formed out of the 
trunk of a single tree, hollowed, and capable of holding 
from one man to the number of forty or fifty. These, they 
managed dexterously with paddles ; and, if overturned, they 
swam about entirely unconcerned, as if in their natural ele- 
ment, righting their canoes with great facility, and bailing 
out the water with a calabash. 

Columbus now assumed the title of admiral and viceroy, 
and called the island which he had discovered San Salvador.* 
It was called by the natives Guanahani, and is one of that 
large cluster of islands, now known as the Bahama Isles. 
It is situated more than three thousand miles west of Gomera, 
from which the squadron had taken its departure, and only 
four degrees south of that island ; so little had Columbus de- 
viated from the westerly course, which he had chosen as the 
most likely to conduct him to the object of his search. 

He employed the next day in visiting the coasts of the 
island, and, from the universal poverty of the inhabitants, he 
perceived that this was not the rich country for which he 
sought. But, conformably to his theory concerning those 
regions of Asia which stretched towards the east, he con- 
cluded that San Salvador was one of the islands which geo- 
graphers described as situated in the great ocean adjacent to 
India. Having observed that most of the people whom he 
had seen there, wore small plates of gold, by way of orna- 
ment, in their nostrils, he eagerly inquired where they got 
that precious metal. They pointed towards the south, and 
indicated that gold abounded in countries situated in that 
quarter. Thither, Columbus determined to direct his course, 

* Named, by the English, Cat Island, 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 23 

He took with him seven of the natives of San Salvador, that, 
by acquiring the Spanish language, they might serve as in- 
terpreters and guides ; and those innocent people considered 
it as a mark of distinction, when selected to accompany him. 

In his progress, he saw several islands. He touched at 
three of the largest ; to which, he gave the names of St. 
Mary, Fernandina,* and Isabella. At this time, one of the 
Indians of San Salvador, who was on board the Nigna, seeing 
himself about to be carried away, by these strangers, far 
from his home, plunged into the sea, and swam to a large 
canoe, filled with natives. The boat of the caravel pursued ; 
but the Indians skimmed along the surface of the sea with 
too much velocity to be overtaken, and, reaching the land, 
fled, like wild deer, to the woods. Shortly afterwards, a 
small canoe approached one of the ships, from a different 
part of the island, containing a single Indian, who came to 
offer a ball of cotton in exchange for hawks' bells. As he 
paused, when near the vessel, and feared to enter, some of 
the sailors leaped into the sea, and took him prisoner. This 
was not pleasing to Columbus. He was desirous of dispell- 
ing any terror or distrust, that might have been awakened 
in the island, by the pursuit of the fugitives, or by the In- 
dian guide who had escaped ; thinking it of the utmost im- 
portance to conciliate the good will of the natives, for the 
benefit of future voyagers. He ordered the captive to be 
brought to him. The poor Indian was led trembling with 
fear, and humbly offered his ball of cotton, as a gift. The 
admiral received him with the utmost benignity, and, declin- 
ing his offering, put a coloured cap upon his head, strings of 
green beads around his arms, and hawks' bells in his ears, 
then, ordering him and his ball of cotton to be placed in the 
canoe, dismissed him, astonished and overjoyed. 

Having landed the next morning at Femandina, Columbus 
found the inhabitants more ingenious and intelligent than 
those of the preceding islands. Some of the women wore 
small coverings, or aprons of cotton cloth, and others had 
mantles of the same fabric ; but for the most part, they were 
entirely naked. Their habitations were very simple ; being 
in the form of a pavilion or high circular tent, constructed 
of branches of trees, covered with reeds and palm leaves. 
They were kept very clean and neat, and sheltered under 
beautiful and spreading trees. For beds, they had nets of 

* Now called Exuma. 



24 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMEHICA. 

cotton, extended between two posts, which they called ha- 
macs, a name since universally adopted amongst seamen. 

Continuing his course to the south, on the 28th of Octo- 
ber, Columbus discovered a country which appeared very 
extensive ; but he was uncertain whether it might prove a 
part of the continent, or an island. The natives of San Sal- 
vador whom he had on board, called it Cuba: Columbus 
named it Juanna. Having entered the mouth of a large ' 
river with his squadron, all the inhabitants fled to the moun- 
tains, as he approached the shore. But, as he resolved to 
careen his ships in that place, he sent some Spaniards, to- 
gether with one of the people of San Salvador, to view the 
interior of the country. They advanced above sixty miles 
from the shore, observed that the soil was more fertile and 
better cultivated, than any that they had hitherto discovered : 
they saw many scattered cottages, besides one village, con- 
taining more than a thousand inhabitants ; found the people 
more intelligent than the natives of San Salvador, and were 
presented with a certain root, the taste of which resembled 
roasted chesnuts ; and also a singular species of corn, called 
maize t there seemed to be no four-footed animals in the 
country, except a species of dogs which could not bark, and 
a creature resembling a rabbit, but of a much smaller size ; 
and they observed some ornaments of gold amongst the peo- 
ple, but of no great value. 

The natives informed Columbus, that the gold, of which 
they made their ornaments, was found in Ciibanican. By 
this word, they meant the middle or inland part of Cuba : 
but, being ignorant of their language, and his thoughts run- 
ning unremittingly upon his own theory concerning the dis- 
covery of the East Indies, Columbus was led, by the resem- 
blance of sound, to suppose that they spoke of the Grand 
Khan ; and imagined that the opulent kingdom of Cathay, 
described by Marco Polo, was not very remote. He con- 
cluded that he must have reached the main land of India, 
and that he could not be far distant from Mangi and Cathay, 
the ultimate destination of his voyage. The prince who 
reigned over this country, must be some oriental potentate 
of importance : he resolved, therefore, to despatch a present 
to the monarch, with one of the letters of recommendation 
from the Castilian sovereigns ; and after visiting his domi- 
nions, to proceed to the capital of Cathay, the residence of 
the Grand Khan. For this mission, he chose two Spaniards, 
Kodrigo de Jerez, and Luis de Torres ; the latter a converted 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA, 25 

Jew, acquainted with Hebrew and Chaldaic, and even a little 
with Arabic ; some one of which languages, Columbus sup- 
posed might be known to this oriental prince. Two Indians 
were sent with them as guides. The ambassadors were fur- 
nished with strings of beads, and other trinkets, to defray 
their travelling expenses, and six days were allowed them to 
go and return. 

" Many, at the present day," observes an elegant historian, 
" will smile at this embassy to a naked savage chieftain, in 
the interior of Cuba, in mistake for an A.siatic monarch ; but 
such was the singular nature of this voyage, a continual series 
of golden dreams, and all interpreted by the delusive volume 
of Marco Polo.'' 

While awaiting the return of his ambassadors, Columbus 
ordered the ships to be thoroughly repaired. He employed 
himself also in collecting information respecting the country, 
and the day after their departure, he ascended the river, in 
boats, the distance of two leagues, until he came to fresh 
water. For several days, he was excited by reports of cin- 
namon trees, and nutmegs, and rhubarb, being found ; but, 
on examination, they all proved fallacious. He showed the 
natives specimens of those and various other spices and 
drugs, which he had brought with him from Spain ; and he 
understood from them that those highly valued commodities 
were to be found, in abundance, towards the south-east. He 
showed them gold and pearls, also ; whereupon, several of 
the old Indians informed him, that there was a country where 
the natives wore ornaments composed of those substances, 
in their ears, and around their neck, arms, and ankles. They 
mingled, however, great extravagancies with their imperfect 
accounts ; describing nations, at a distance, who had only 
one eye ; others who had the heads of dogs, and were canni- 
bals, who cut the throats of their prisoners, and sucked their 
blood. 

In the course of their researches, in quest of the luxuries 
of commerce, they met with the potato, an humble root, little 
valued at the time ; and beheld several of the natives walk- 
ing about with fire-brands in their hands, and a certain dried 
herb, now called tobacco, which they rolled up in a leaf, and, 
lighting one end, put the other into their mouths, and con- 
tinued puffing out the smoke. 

The return of the envoys destroyed many splendid fancies 
of Columbus, about the Asiatic prince and his capital. He 
had been cruising m a region of enchantment, over which 
C 




^5 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

his imagination exercised a magic power. Though delighted 
with the natural beauty, he was disappointed as regarded the 
metallic riches of the country. Notwithstanding that he had 
visited almost every harbour, from Porto del Principe, on the 
north coast of Cuba, to the eastern extremity of the island, 
he did not find gold in so large a quantity, as was sufficient 
to satisfy either the avarice of his followers, or the expecta- 
tions of the court to which he was to return. The people 
of the country pointed towards the east, where there was 
situated an island, called, by them, Hayti, in which that me- 
tal was more abundant. Columbus ordered his squadron to 
bend its course thither ; but Martin Alonzo Pinzon, impa- 
tient to be the first to take possession of the expected trea- 
sures, quitted his companions, regardless of all the admiral's 
signals to shorten sail. 

Retarded by contrary winds, Columbus did not reach Hayti 
until the 6th of December. He called the harbour which 
he first entered, St. Nicholas, and the island itself, in honour 
of the kingdom by which he had been employed, Hispaniola. 
It is now generally called Hayti and St. Domingo. As he 
could neither meet with the Pinta, nor have any intercourse 
with the inhabitants, who fled, in great consternation, to the 
woods, he soon quitted St. Nicholas, and, sailing along the 
northern coast, entered another harbour, which he called 
Conception. Here, he was more fortunate : his people over- 
took a woman who was flying from them ; and, after treating 
her with great gentleness, dismissed her with a present of 
such toys as they knew were most valued in those regions. 
The description which she gave to her countrymen, of the 
humanity and wonderful qualities of the strangers ; their ad^ 
miration of the trinkets which she showed them, and their 
eagerness to participate in the same favours, removed all their 
fears, and induced many of them to return to the harbour. 
They possessed gold in greater abundance than their neigh- 
bours, which they readily exchanged for bells, beads, or pins. 

Hercj Columbus w^as visited by a prince or cazique of the 
country. He appeared with all the pomp known amongst a 
simple people ; being carried in a sort of palanquin, on the 
shoulders of four men, and attended by two hundred of his 
subjects, who served him with great respect. He gave Co- 
lumbus a girdle of curious workmanship, and some thin plates 
of gold ; receiving, in return, presents of small value in the 
eye of a European, but highly acceptable to him. 

A small river emptied into Port Conception, after winding 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 37 

through a delightful country. The coast abounded with fish, 
some of which even leaped into their boats. They cast their 
nets, therefore, and caught a large quantity, and amongst them 
several kinds similar to those of Spain. They heard also the 
notes of a bird which they mistook for the nightingale, and 
of several others to which they were accustomed ; simple 
associations, which spoke to the heart, and reminded them 
of their Andalusian groves. 

Having now become more familiar with the Spaniards, the 
natives conducted them to their houses, and set before them 
casava-bread, fish, roots, and various kinds of fruit. Learn- 
ing that they were fond of parrots, they brought great num- 
bers of them, which they had domesticated, and indeed 
offered freely whatever they possessed. Hospitality, we are 
told, was with them a law of nature, universally observed: 
it was not necessary to be known, to receive its succours ; 
every house was as open to the stranger, as his- own. — " True 
it is," writes Columbus, " that, after they felt confidence, and 
lost their fear of us, they were so liberal of what they pos- 
sessed, that it would not be believed by those who had not 
seen it. If any thing were asked of them, they never said 
no ; but rather gave it cheerfully, and showed as much amity 
as if they gave their very hearts ; and, whether the thing 
were of great or of little price, they were contented with 
whatever was given in return. In all these islands, it appears 
to me that the common men have but one wife ; but they 
give twenty to their chieftain or king. The women seem to 
work more than the men ; and I have not been able to ascer- 
tain whether they possess individual property ; but rather 
think that whatever one has, all the rest share, especially in 
articles of food." — " It is certain," observes a cotemporary 
historian,* " that the land amongst these people is as com- 
mon as the sun and water ; and that ' mine and thine,' the 
seeds of all mischief, have no place with them. They are 
content with so little, that, in so large a country, they have 
rather superfluity than scarceness ; so that they seem to live 
in the golden world without toil, living in open gardens, not 
intrenched with dykes, divided with hedges, or defended by 
walls. They deal truly, one with another, without law, 
without books, and without judges. They take him for an 
evil and mischievous man, who feeleth pleasure in doing 
|iurt to another ; and notwithstanding they delight not in su- 

* Peter Martyr. 



28 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

perfluities, yet they provide for the increase of such roots 
whereof they make their bread, contented with such simple 
diet, whereby health is preserved, and disease avoided." 

Before leaving Port Conception, Columbus ordered a large 
cross to be erected in the centre of the village ; and, from 
the readiness with which the Indians assisted, and their 
prompt imitation of the Spaniards in their acts of adoration, 
lie inferred that it would be easy to convert them all to Chris- 
tianity. 

Still intent on discovering the mines which yielded gold, 
Columbus interrogated all the natives with whom he had any 
intercourse, concerning their situation. They concurred in 
pointing out a mountainous country, which they called 
Cibao, at some distance from the sea, and further to the 
east. Struck with the sound, which appeared to him the 
same with Cipango, the name by which Marco Polo, and 
others who had travelled in the east, distinguished the island 
of Japan, he no longer doubted of the vicinity of the coun- 
tries which he had discovered, to the remote parts of Asia ; 
and accordingly directed his course towards the east. He 
entered a commodious harbour, which he called St. Tliomas, 
and found that district subject to a powerful cazique, named 
Guacanahari ; who, as he afterwards learned, was one of the 
five sovereigns amongst whom the whole island was divided. 
He immediately sent to Columbus a messenger, who, in the 
cazique's name delivered to him, as a present, a mask, cu- 
riously fashioned, with the ears, nose, and mouth, of beaten 
gold, and invited him to the place of his residence, now called 
Cape Fran^ais, and also Cape Henry, some leagues towards 
the east. Columbus deputed some of his officers to visit the 
prince. They returned with so favourable an account, both 
of the country and the people, as made Columbus impatient 
of that interview with Guacanahari, to which he had been 
invited. 

For this purpose, he sailed from St. Thomas, on the 24th 
of December, with a fair wind, and the sea perfectly calm ; 
and, as amidst the multiplicity of his occupations, he had not 
closed his eyes for two days, he retired at midnight, in order 
to take some repose, having committed the helm to the pilot, 
with strict injunctions not to quit it for a moment. But his 
prudent instructions were disobeyed. Dreading no danger, 
the pilot carelessly left the helm to an inexperienced boy, 
and the ship, being carried away by a current, was dashed 
against a rock. The violence of the shock awoke Cctlunx- 



fflSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 2^ 

bus. When he reached the deck, all there was confusion 
and despair. He alone retained presence of mind. He or- 
dered some of the sailors to take a boat, and carry out an 
anchor astern ; but, instead of obeying, they rowed off towards 
the Nigna, which was distant about half a league. He then 
ordered the masts to be cut away, in order to lighten the ship, 
but all his endeavours were now too late : the vessel opened 
near the keel, and filled so fast with water, that her loss was 
inevitable. The timely assistance of boats from the Nigna, 
enabled the crew to save their lives. As soon as the island- 
ers heard of this disaster, they crowded to the shore, headed 
by their prince, Guacanahari, and, instead of taking advan- 
tage of the distress in which they beheld the Spaniards, they 
lamented their misfortune with tears, and assisted them in 
saving their property from the wreck. 

At this time, a canoe arrived from anither part of the is- 
land, bringing pieces of gold, to be exchanged for hawks' 
bells. Nothing was so highly valued by the natives, as these 
toys. They were extravagantly fond of the dances which 
they sometimes performed to the cadence of certain songs, 
accompanied by the sound of a kind of drum, made from 
the trunk of a tree, and the rattling of hollow bits of wood ; 
but, when they hung their hawks' bells about their persons, 
and heard their clear musical sound, responding to their 
movements as they danced, nothing could exceed their wild 
delight. 

Guacanahari invited Columbus to his house. He set be- 
fore him a repast, as clioice as his simple means afforded, 
consisting of coneys, fish, and roots, and the various fruits 
with which the island abounded. The generous cazique did 
every thing in his power, to honour his guest, and cheer him 
under his misfortune ; showing a warmth of sympathy, yet 
delicacy of attention, wiiich could not have been expected 
from his savage state. After the collation, he conducted Co- 
lumbus to the beautiful groves which surrounded his resi- 
dence, attended by more than a thousand of the natives, 
who performed several of their national games and dances, 
which Guacanahari had ordered, to amuse the melancholy of 
his interesting guest. 

He displayed also the natural munificence of his spirit, by 
distributing various presents amongst the attendants of Co- 
lumbus ; conducting himself, in all things, in a manner that 
would have done honour to a prince in civilized life. 

Whatever trifles Columbus gave, in return, were regarded 
c2 



30 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

as celestial gifts. "The Indians," observes a venerable au- 
thor,* " in admiring any article of European manufacture, 
continually repeated the word Turey,which, in their language, 
signifies Heaven. They pretended to distinguish the diffe- 
rent qualities of gold by the smell : in the same way, when 
any article of tin, of silver, or other white metal was given 
to them, to which they were unaccustomed, they smelled it, 
and declared it turey of excellent quality, giving, in exchange, 
pieces of the finest gold. Every thing, indeed, from the 
hands of a Spaniard was precious in their eyes ; a rusty piece 
of iron, an end of a strap, a head of a nail, every thing had 
an occult and supernatural value, and smell of turey.^^ 

The condition of Columbus was now such, that he stood 
in need of consolation. He had hitherto procured no intelli- 
gence of the Pinta, nor did he any longer indulge a hope of 
meeting her, in those seas. There remained only one ves- 
sel, the smallest of his squadron, to carry back his crew to 
Europe. He resolved to leave a part of his men in the is- 
land, that, by residing there, they might learn the language 
of the natives, examine the nature of the country, search 
for mines, and prepare for the commodious reception of the 
colony, with which he proposed to return. 

His men having approved of the design, it remained only 
to obtain the consent of Guacanahari ; whose unsuspicious 
simplicity soon presented a favourable opportunity of propos- 
ing it. Having expressed some curiosity to know the cause 
which had induced the islanders to fly, with so great precipi- 
tation, on the approach of his ships, Columbus was informed 
by the cazique, that the country was much infested by the 
incursions of certain people, whom he called Caribeans, and 
represented as inhabiting several islands to the south-east. 
These he described as a fierce and warlike race of men, who 
delighted in blood, and devoured the flesh of their prisoners ; 
and, as the Spaniards, at their first appearance, were supposed 
to be Caribeans, whom the natives durst not face in battle, 
they had recourse to their usual mode of securing their safety, 
by flying to the woods. Columbus promptly used this infor- 
mation to favour his design. He instantly offered the ca- 
zique the aid of the Spaniards, to repel his enemies: he 
engaged to take him and his people under the protection of 
the powerful monarch whom he served ; and oflered to leave 
in the island as great a number of his men as would be sufli- 

* Las Casas. 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 31 

cieiit, not only to defend the inliabitants against future incur- 
sions, but to avenge their past wrongs. The credulous prince 
eagerly embraced the proposal. The ground was marked 
out for a small fort, which Columbus called La Navidad, or 
the Nativity, because he had landed there on Christmas-day. 
In ten days, the work was finished. It was surrounded by a 
deep ditch, the ramparts were fortified by palisades, and 
furnished with cannon saved from the admiral's ship. 

Columbus appointed thirty-eight of his people to remain 
on the island, and intrusted the command to Diego de Ara- 
do. He strictly enjoined them to avoid giving offence to the 
natives, by any violence or exaction ; to cultivate the friend- 
ship of Guacanahari, but not to put themselves in his power, 
by straggling in small parties, and marching too far from the 
fort ; and he promised soon to revisit them, with a reinforce- 
ment of so much strength as would enable them to take full 
possession of that country. 

, -Qo He left Navidad on the 4th of January, 1493, and, 
steering towards the east, discovered and gave names 
to most of the harbours on the northern coast of the island. 
On the 6th, he descried the Pinta, and soon overtook her, 
after a separation of more than six weeks. Pinzon endea- 
voured to justify his conduct, by pretending that he had been 
driven from his course by stress of weather, and prevented 
from returning by contrary winds. Though Columbus still 
suspected his perfidious intentions, and well knew that what 
he urged in his defence was frivolous, as well as false, he 
was so sensible that this was not the proper time for exercis- 
ing any high strain of authority, that, unsatisfactory as was 
Pinzon's apology, he admitted it, without hesitation, and re- 
stored him to favour. 

They continued coasting along the island, until they came 
to a beautiful headland, to which they gave the name of Cape 
del Enamorado, or the Lover's Cape, but which is at present 
known by the name of Cape Caboon. A little beyond this, 
they anchored in a vast bay, extending so far inland, that 
Columbus at first supposed it might be an arm of the sea, 
separating Hispaniola from some other land. Having gone 
on shore, they found the natives very different from the gen- 
tle and pacific people hitherto met by them on this island. 
The natives here were of a ferocious aspect, and of a turbu- 
lent and warlike deportment. They were hideously painted, 
and decorated with the feathers of parrots and other birds of 
gaudy plumage. They were armed with bows and arrows, 



32 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

clubs, and formidable swords. Their bows were as long as 
those formerly used in England ; their arrows were of slender 
reeds, pointed with hard wood, and sometimes tipped with 
bone, or with the tooth of a fish. Their swords were of 
palm-wood, nearly as hard and as heavy as iron ; and capable, 
with one blow, of cleaving through a helmet, to the very 
brains. 

But, notwithstanding they were thus prepared for combat, 
they made no attempt to molest the Spaniards; on the con- 
trary, they sold to their visiters several of their weapons, and 
one of them was induced to go on board the admiral's ship. 
Having regaled the warrior in the manner most agreeable 
and captivating to savages, and made him various presents 
of articles most likely to excite the curiosity of his country- 
men, Columbus sent him on shore, in the hope, through his 
favourable representation, to open a trade with them for gold. 
As the boat approached the land, more than fifty savages, 
armed with bows and arrows, war-clubs, and javelins, were 
observed lurking in the woods. On a word from the Indian 
in the boat, they laid aside their arms, and came forth to 
meet the Spaniards. The latter, in conformity with instruc- 
tions from Columbus, endeavoured to trade with them for 
several of their weapons, to take, as curiosities, to Spain. 
They parted with two of their bows ; but suddenly, either 
actuated by suspicion, or thinking to overpower this small 
band of strangers, they rushed to the place where they had 
left their arms, snatched them up, and returned with threaten- 
ing looks, and provided with cords, as if to bind the Spani- 
ards. The latter immediately attacked them, wounded two, 
and put the rest to flight, terrified at the flashing lustre, and 
keen edge of the European sabres. 

This was the first contest that the Spaniards had with the 
islanders, and the first time that native blood was shed, by 
the white men, in the new world. 

Hostility, however, soon ceased with this generous people. 
Their frank and bold spirit was evinced on the following day ; 
when, a multitude appearing on the beach, Columbus sent a 
large party, well armed, on shore, in a boat. The natives 
immediately approached, as freely and confidingly as if no- 
thing had occurred. The cazique who ruled over the neigh- 
bouring country was present. He sent, to the boat, a string 
of beads, formed of small stones, or of the hard part of shells, 
which the Spaniards understood to be a token and assurance 
of amity: but they were not yet acquainted with the full 



fflSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 33 

meaning of the symbol; which was the wampum-belt, the 
pledge of peace, held sacred amongst the Indians. The 
chieftain followed shortly afterwards, and, having entered the 
boat with only three attendants, was conveyed on board the 
caravel. This frank and confiding conduct was properly ap- 
preciated by Columbus : he received the cazique with cordial 
friendship, treated him with such dainties as his ship afforded, 
and, after exciting his amazement by her structure and im- 
plements of war, and, making him and his attendants many 
presents, sent them to land, highly gratified by their enter- 
tainment. 

From the condition of his ships, as well as the temper of 
his men, Columbus now found it necessary to hasten his re- 
turn to Europe. On the 16th of January, he directed his 
course towards the north-east, and soon lost sight of land. 
He had on board some of the natives, whom he had taken 
from the different islands ; and, besides the gold, which was 
the chief object of research, he had collected specimens of 
ail the productions likely to become objects of commerce, as 
well as many unknown birds, and other natural curiosities, 
which might attract the attention of the learned, or excite 
the wonder of the people. 

The voyage was prosperous, until the 14th of February, 
and he had advanced nearly five-hundred leagues across the 
Atlantic, when the v/ind began to rise. It continued to blow 
with increasing rage, and terminated in a furious hurricane. 
Every expedient was employed, that the naval skill of Co- 
lumbus could devise, in order to save the ships. The painful 
solicitude felt by him cannot be described. He dreaded 
that all knowledge of his amazing discoveries was now to 
perish, and that his name would descend to posterity as that 
of a chimerical projector. He accordingly retired to his 
cabin, and wrote on parchment a short account of his voyage, 
and of the colony left by him at Navidad. Having wrapped 
this in an oil-cloth, which he enclosed in a cake of wax, he 
put it into a cask, carefully stopped, and threw it into the 
sea ; in the hope that some fortunate accident might preserve 
a deposit, of so much importance to the world. 

At length, the wind abated, the agitation of the waves 
subsided, and on the evening of the 15th, Columbus descried 
land. This, he soon discovered to be St. Mary's, one of the 
Azores, or Western Isles, subject to the crown of Portugal. 
There, after a violent contest with the governor, he obtained 
a supply of fresh provisions ; and, having, as soon as the wea* 



34 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

ther would permit, departed from the Azores, he steered for 
the coast of Spain ; but, after having encountered another 
storm, little inferior to the former in violence, he was forced 
to take shelter in the river Tagus. On application to the king 
of Portugal, he was allowed to proceed, with his vessels, to 
Lisbon ; and, notwithstanding the envy which it was natural 
for the Portuguese to feel, when they beheld another nation, 
not only rivalling, but eclipsing their fame in the field of dis- 
covery, Columbus was received with merited distinction. 
The king invited him to court, then held at Valparaiso, 
treated him with the highest respect, and listened to the ac- 
count of his voyage with admiration, mingled with regret. 

Impatient to return to Spain, Columbus remained only five 
days at Lisbon. On the 15th of March, he arrived in the 
port of Palos, seven months and eleven days from the time 
when he departed thence upon his voyage. The prosperous 
issue of his adventure, was quickly known by the inhabitants. 
The effusion of joy was unbounded. The bells were rung, 
the cannon fired : Columbus was received with royal honours, 
and all the people, in solemn procession, accompanied him 
and his crew to the church, where they returned thanks to 
Heaven, which had so wonderfully conducted and crowned 
with success, a voyage of greater length, and of more impor- 
tance, than had been attempted in any former age. 

On the evening of the same day, he had the satisfaction 
of seeing the Pinta, which the violence of the tempest had 
driven far to the north, enter the harbour. When he beheld 
the vessel of Columbus riding at anchor, and learned the en- 
thusiasm with which he had been received, the heart of Pin- 
zon died within him. He called to mind his frequent arro- 
gance and insubordination, and his wilful desertion off the 
coast of Cuba, by which he had impeded the prosecution of 
the voyage. Descending into his boat, therefore, he landed 
privately, and kept himself out of sight, until he heard of the 
admiral's departure. He then returned to his home, broken 
in health, and deeply dejected : he found himself fallen in 
public opinion ; fancied the finger of scorn continually pointed 
at him ; and in a few days he sunk into the grave, the vic- 
tim of humiliation and remorse.* 

" His story," observes one of the biographers of Columbus, 

* The family of the Pinzons removed, a long time ago, to a town called 
Huelva, where there are now four or five branches of them. They are not 
wealthy. They preserve some documents in the hand-writing of Marthi 
Alonzo Pinzon, and follow his profession, 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AJNIERICA. 35 

" shows how one lapse from duty may counterbalance the 
merit of a thousand services ; how one moment of weakness 
may mar the beauty of a whole life of virtue ; and how impor- 
tant it is for a man, under all circumstances, to be true, not 
merely to others, but to himself." 

Columbus lost no time in conveying to Ferdinand and 
Isabella — then at Barcelona — information of his success. 
Equally astonished and delighted, the sovereigns invited 
him, in terms the most respectful and flattering, to repair 
immediately to court, that, from his own mouth, they might 
receive a full narrative of his extraordinary achievement. It 
was about the middle of April, when he arrived at Barcelona. 
His entrance into the city resembled a Roman triumph. The 
natives of the countries which he had discovered, marched 
first : next, were carried the ornaments of gold, fashioned by 
the rude art of the natives, the grains of gold found in the 
mountains, and dust of the same metal, gathered in the rivers. 
After these, appeared the various commodities of the newly- 
discovered countries, together with their curious productions ; 
and the procession was closed by Columbus himself. Ferdi- 
nand and Isabella, received him clad in their royal robes, and 
seated on a magnificent throne. When he approached, they 
arose, and, raising him, as he kneeled to kiss their hands, 
commanded him to take his seat upon a chair prepared for him, 
and to give a circumstantial narrative of his voyage. Every 
mark of honour, that gratitude could dictate, or admiration 
suggest, was conferred upon Columbus. Letters patent were 
issued, confirming to him and to his heirs, all the privileges 
contained in the treaty concluded at Santa Fe : his family 
was ennobled ; the king and queen, and, after their example, 
the courtiers, treated him, on every occasion, with all the 
ceremonious respect paid to persons of the highest rank. 
But what pleased Columbus most, was an order, to equip, 
without delay, an armament, of so great force, as might ena- 
ble him not only to take possession of the countries which 
he had already discovered, but to search for more opulent 
regions, which he still confidently expected to find. 

Next to the honour conferred upon him by the king, may 
be mentioned the respect shown him by Pedro Gonzalez de 
Mendoza, the grand cardinal of Spain, and first subject of 
the realm. He invited Columbus to a banquet ; where he 
assigned him the most honourable place at table, and had him 
served with the ceremonials, which, in those punctilious 
times, were observed towards sovereigns. At this repast, is 



S6 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

said to have occurred the well known anecdote of the egg. 
A shallow courtier present, impatient of the honours paid to 
Columbus, and meanly jealous of him as a foreigner, asked 
him whether he thought that, in case he had not discovered 
the Indies, there were not other men in Spain, who would 
have been capable of the enterprise? To this, Columbus 
made no immediate reply ; but, taking an egg^ invited the 
company to make it stand on one end. Every one attempted 
it, but m Vain ; whereupon, Columbus struck it upon the 
table, so as to break the end, and left it standing on the 
broken part ; illustrating, in this simple manner, that, when 
he had once shown the way to the new world, nothing was 
easier than to follow it. 

The fame of the successful voyage of Columbus spread 
over Europe, and excited general attention. Various conjec- 
tures were entertained, concerning the newly-found coun- 
tries, and the division of the earth to which they belonged. 
Columbus adhered to his original opinion, that they were a 
part of those vast regions in Asia, comprehended under the 
general term of India ; an assertion corroborated by the ob- 
servations made by him concerning their productions. Not 
only the Spaniards, but the other nations of Europe, seem to 
have adopted this erroneous notion. The countries which 
he discovered, were then considered a part of India ; and the 
name of India is given to them, by Ferdinand and Isabella, 
in a ratification of their former agreement granted to Colum- 
bus, on his return. Even after the error which caused this 
opinion was detected, and the true position of the new world 
was ascertained, the name has remained : the appellation of 
West Indies is given, by all the people of Europe, to the 
islands, and the name of Indians to the aboriginal inhabitants 
of every portion of the western continent and islands. 



I 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 37 

CHAPTER III. 

THE SECOND VOYAGE OF COLUMBUS. 

HE DISCOVERS DESEADA, DOMINICA, MARIGALANTE, GAUDA- 

LOUPE, ANTIGUA, SANTA CRUZ, AND PORTO RICO FOUNDS 

THE CITY OF ISABELLA, AND THE FORT OF ST. THOMAS 

DISCOVERS JAMAICA AND IS JOINED BY HIS BROTHER BAR- 
THOLOMEW AT HISPANIOLA. 

An extraordinary spirit of enterprise was now excited 
amongst the Spaniards. Volunteers of every rank solicited 
employment. Allured by the inviting prospects which opened 
to their ambition and avarice, they were not intimidated 
either by the length or the danger of the navigation ; and, 
cautious as was the temperament of Ferdinand, he seems to 
have caught the same spirit with his subjects. Preparations 
for a second voyage were urged, with an activity unusual in 
Spain, and to an extent that would be deemed not inconside- 
rable in the present age. The fleet consisted of seventeen ves- 
sels, some of which were of large burthen. It had on board 
fifteen hundred persons ; amongst whom, were many of noble 
families, who had served in honourable stations. The greater 
part of these, bemg destined to remain in the country, were 
provided with every thing required either for conquest or 
colonization ; including all kinds of European domestic ani- 
mals ; such seeds and plants as were most likely to thrive in 
the climate of the West Indies ; utensils and instruments of 
every sort ; and artificers of that description which might be 
most useful in an infant settlement. 

But Ferdinand and Isabella did not rest their title to the 
possession of the newly-discovered countries, on the opera- 
tions of the fleet alone. The example of the Portuguese, as 
well as the superstition of the age, made it necessary to ob- 
tain, from the Roman pontifi", a grant of those territories 
which they wished to occupy. The pope, as the representa- 
tive of Jesus Christ, was supposed to have a vighX of domi- 
nion over all the kingdoms oif the earth ; and, by an act of 
liberality, which cost him nothing, and which served to esta- 
blish the jurisdiction and pretensions of the papal see, granted, 
in full right, to Ferdinand and Isabella, all the countries in- 
D 



38 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

habited by infidels, which they had aheady discovered, or 
should at any future time discover. As it vi^as necessary to 
prevent this grant from interfering with that formerly made 
to the crown of Portugal, he appointed that a line, supposed 
to be drawn from pole to pole, one hundred leagues to the 
west of the Azores, should serve as an intervening limit ; 
and, in the plenitude of his power, bestowed all to the east 
of this imaginary line upon the Portuguese, and all to the 
west upon the Spaniards. Zeal for propagating the Christian 
faith, was the consideration employed by Ferdinand, in so- 
liciting this bull, and is mentioned by Alexander VL, as his 
chief motive for issuing it. Twelve zealous ecclesiastics, 
amongst whom was one of those subtle politicians of the 
cloister. Father Boyl, who was placed over them, as apostoli- 
cal vicar of the new world, were appointed to accompany 
Columbus, and to devote themselves to the conversion of the 
natives : the Indians, also, whom Columbus had brought with 
him, were baptized with much ceremony ; the king himself, 
and the chief persons of his court, standing as their sponsors 
at the font. 

Great hopes were entertained, that, on their return to their 
native country, those Indians would facilitate the introduc- 
tion of Christianity amongst their countrymen. One of them, 
at the request of prince Juan, remained in his household, 
but died not long afterwards ; his baptism giving occasion to 
a Spanish historian* to remark, that, according to what ought 
to be our pious belief, he was the first of his nation that en- 
tered Heaven. 

Nothing now retarded the departure of the fleet. Colum- 
bus sailed from Cadiz on the 25th of September, and, touch- 
ing again at the island of Gomera, he steered farther towards 
the south, than on his former voyage. By holding this course, 
he enjoyed more steadily the benefit of the regular winds 
which blow within the tropics ; and was carried towards a 
large cluster of islands, situated considerably towards the 
east of those which he had already discovered. On the 2d 
of November, the twenty-sixth day after his departure from 
Gomera, he descried land=, It was one of the Caribbee or 
Leeward islands ; to which, he gave the name of Deseada, 
(the desired,) on account of the impatience of his crew to 
discover some part of the new world. He visited successively 
other islands, Avhich he named Dominica, Marigalante, Gau- 

* Herrera. 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 39 

daloupe, Santa Maria la Antigua, Santa Cmz, and San Juan 
de Puerto Rico, and several afterwards scattered in his way, 
as he advanced towards the north-west. Dominica was so 
called, because he discovered it on Sunday ; Marigalante, 
from the name of his vessel ; and Gaudaloupe, because he 
had promised the monks of our lady of Gaudaloupe, in Estre- 
madura, to call some newly-discovered place after their con- 
vent. 

All these islands, he found inhabited by that fierce race of 
people whom Guacanahari had painted in so frightful colours. 
His description, as regards their v/arlike character, appeared 
not to have been exaggerated. The Spaniards never at- 
tempted to land, without meeting such a reception, as indi- 
cated the martial daring and spirit of the natives. In their 
habitations, the Spaniards observed what they conceived to 
be " relics of those horrid feasts which they had made upon 
the bodies of their enemies taken in war." This supposi- 
tion, however, appears to us erroneous. We do not believe 
that any of those islanilers eat human flesh. A more inti- 
mate knowledge of the practices of the Indian nations, leads 
us to conclude, that the portions of the human body then 
seen by the Spaniards, were preserved, by those islanders, 
as trophies, to indicate the number of their captured ene- 
mies. We might say further, that little confidence should be 
placed in the historians of that age, when asserting the bar- 
barism of savage nations. Their conversion to the species 
of Christianity which then prevailed in Europe, whether by 
persuasion or by force, was the ruling passion of the clergy — 
as bigoted as they were ignorant, and as cruel as they were 
superstitious ; we may therefore suppose that they listened 
eagerly to every account which depicted those nations in 
colours tending to excite horror and disgust, and filled up the 
narrative by the invention of such additional circumstances, 
as served to justify the sanguinary extension of v/hat they 
designated as the church of God. 

At Gaudaloupe, Columbus permitted several of the cap- 
tains to land, with a number of men, to open a communica- 
tion with the inhabitants. After hearing so formidable 
accounts respecting the natives of the island, he was ex- 
tremely uneasy, in the evening, that a captain of one of the 
caravels, Diego Marque, was missing, together with eight 
men. He had landed, with his party, early in the morning 
of the 5th of November, without leave, and, straying into 
the woods, had not since been seen. On the following day, 



40 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

the wanderers had not returned, and the solicitude of Co- 
lumbus increased, fearing that they might have fallen into 
some ambush of the savages ; for, several of them were so 
experienced mariners, that it was thought, in case of being 
lost, they could readily have found their way back, by the 
stars. Parties were sent in various directions, in quest of 
them, each with a trumpeter, to sound calls and signals, 
truns were fired from the ships, and small-arms on shore, but 
without effect; and the parties returned in the evening, 
wearied by a fruitless search. The reports made by them 
were not calculated to allay the apprehensions for the safety 
of their companions. They had entered several houses, they 
said, in which human limbs were suspended from the beams, 
as if curing for provisions ; they found the head of a young 
man recently killed, which was yet bleeding, and some parts 
of his body boiling with the flesh of geese and parrots, and 
others roasting before the fire. 

Columbus was much embarrassed as to the course he should 
pursue. He was very desirous to arrive at Navidad, and as- 
certain the fate of the Spaniards whom he had left there ; 
and was impatient of any delay. In this emergency, Alonzo 
de Ojeda, a daring young cavalier, already distinguished in 
Spain for his chivalric exploits, volunteered to penetrate with 
forty men into the interior of the island, and search all the 
forests for the wanderers, whom their countrymen imagined 
were then preparing by the natives as a dainty for one of 
their horrid feasts. But their search was made in vain. To 
the discharge of the arquebusses, the sound of the trumpets, 
and the shouts of the human voice, no voice nor sound was 
heard, in reply, but the wild echo of the cliffs and vales. 
Columbus now concluded that the stragglers were lost. Se- 
veral days had elapsed since their disappearance, during which 
time, if alive, it seemed most probable that they would either 
have been found, or have made their way back to the ships. 
He was just on the point of sailing, when, to the universal 
joy of the fleet, a signal was made by them from the shore. 
Their haggard and exhausted looks bespoke what they had 
suffered. Having unaccountably diverged on their first en- 
tering the forests, they had unknowingly penetrated deeper 
and deeper into the island, until they had become completely 
bewildered ; and, for several days, they had been perplexed 
in the mazes of a trackless forest, so dense as almost to ex- 
clude the light of day. They brought with them several 
women and boys; but they had not met any men; the 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 41 

greater part of the warriors being fortunately absent on a 
cruise, in quest of prisoners and booty. 

Columbus made no stay in any of those islands, but pro- 
ceeded directly to Hispaniola. When he arrived off Navi- 
dad, the station at which he had left the thirty-eight men 
under the command of Arado, he was astonished that none 
of them appeared. Foreboding what had befallen them, he 
rowed instantly to land. All the natives from whom he might 
have received information, had fled. The fort built by him 
was entirely demolished, and the tattered garments, together 
with the broken arms and utensils scattered around, left^no 
doubt respecting the unhappy fate of the garrison. While 
the Spaniards were shedding tears over those sad memorials 
of their fellow-citizens, a brother of the cazique Guacana- 
hari arrived. From him, Columbus received a particular de- 
tail of what had happened after his departure from the island. 
The familiar intercourse of the Indians with the Spaniards, 
had tended gradually to diminish the superstitious venera- 
tion, with which their first appeai*ance had inspired that sim- 
ple people. As soon as the powerful restraint, imposed by 
the presence and authority of Columbus, was withdrawn, the 
garrison threw off all regard for Arada. Regardless of the 
prudent instructions given to them by Columbus, every man 
became independent, and gratified his desires, without con- 
trol. The gold, the women, the provisions of the natives — 
all, became the prey of those licentious oppressors. They 
roamed, in small parties, over the island, extending their ra- 
pacity and insolence to every corner. The cazique of Ciboa 
surprised and cut off several of the Spaniards, and, assembling 
his subjects, set the fort on fire. Some of the Spaniards 
were slain in its defence ; the rest perished, in attempting to 
escape by crossing an arm of the sea. Guacanahari, whom 
all their exactions had not alienated from the Spaniards, had 
taken arms in their behalf, and, while endeavouring to protect 
them, had received a wound, by which he was still confined. 

At the invitation of Colum.bus, Guacanahari, though still 
suffering from his wound, accompanied him, one evening to 
the ships. On board of the admiral's vessel, were ten wo- 
men, delivered from the captivity of the Caribs. These soon 
attracted the notice of the cazique. Amongst them, was 
one distinguished above her companions, by a certain lofti- 
ness of air and manner. She had been much noticed and 
admired by the Spaniards, who had given her the name of 
Catalina. The cazique spoke to her, repeatedly, with great 
d2 



42 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

gentleness of tone and manner; pity, it is not improbable, 
being- mingled with his admiration ; for, though rescued from 
the hands of the Caribs, she and her companions were treated 
as captives on board the ship. In the evening, Guacanahari 
returned to land. The next morning, there was an appear- 
ance of mysterious movement and agitation amongst the na- 
tives along the shore : and in the evening, the brother of 
Guacanahari came on board, under the pretext of bartering 
gold. He was observed to converse privately with the In- 
dian females, particularly with Catalina ; and, after remain- 
ing some time on board, he returned to the shore. It seems, 
that the warm heart of the cazique had been touched by the 
duress of this Indian beauty, and captivated by her charms, 
and that, with a kind of native gallantry, he designed to free 
her from confinement. At midnight, when the crew were 
fast asleep, the intrepid Catalina awoke her fellov/ prisoners, 
and proposed a bold attempt to regain their freedom. The 
ship was anchored fully three miles from the shore, and the 
sea was rough ; but these island women were accustomed to 
sport amongst the waves, and to consider water as scarcely 
less their natural element, than the land. Having descended 
from the side of the vessel with great caution and silence, 
they swam bravely for the shore. But, with all their precau- 
tion, they were overheard by the watch. The alarm v/as 
given, the boats were manned, and pursuit was made in the 
direction of a light blazing on the shore : yet, notwithstand- 
ing all the vigour of the oar, so rapid were the movements 
of these amphibious fugitives, that they reached the land in 
safety. Four were retaken on the beach, but Catalina, with 
the rest of her band of swimmers, escaped into the forest. 

Columbus had at first indulged in the error, that the natives 
of Hayti were destitute of all notions of religion, and that, 
consequently, not being pre-occupied, it would be the easier 
to implant in their minds the doctrines of Christianity. But 
no people were ever yet known who were devoid of a reli- 
gion. It was soon discovered that these islanders had their 
creed, though of a vague and simple nature. Like the Greeks 
and the Romans, they believed in one Supreme Being, who 
inhabited the skies, and was immortal : like them, they held 
the existence of inferior deities, who performed the office of 
messengers and mediators, through whom they addressed 
their worship to the great ruler of mankind. Every family, 
and each individual had likewise a protecting genius, like the 
penates or household gods of the ancients. They had priests, 



fflSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 43 

who pretended to hold communion with the Zemes, or infe- 
rior deities ; who practised rigorous fasts and ablutions ; pre- 
tended to have trances and visions ; to prophesy as to coming 
events ; to cure all kinds of diseases ; and, like every other 
nation of the earth, they believed in the immortality of the 
soul. 

Instead of wasting time in scrutinizing the conduct of the 
natives, in relation to the garrison of Navidad, Columbus 
took precautions for preventing any future injury. With this 
view, he chose a situation more healthy and convenient. He 
traced out the plan of a town, in a large plain, near a spa- 
cious bay, and compelled every Spaniard to aid in accom- 
plishing a work, on which depended their common safety. 
By their united labour, the houses and ramparts were soon 
so far advanced, as to afford them shelter and security. This 
rising city, the first founded by Europeans, in the new world, 
he named Isabella, in honour of his patroness, the queen of 
Castile. 

1494 ^^^^ Columbus had not only to sustain all the hard- 
ships, and to encounter all the difficulties to which 
infant colonies are exposed, but also to contend against what 
was more insuperable, — the laziness, the impatience, and 
mutinous disposition of his followers. By the enervating in- 
fluence of a hot climate, the national inactivity of the Spa- 
niards seemed to increase. They had not patience to wait 
for the gradual returns of the soil, and the smallness of the 
quantity caused them to despise the gold. The spirit of dis- 
affection spread, and a conspiracy was formed, which might 
have proved fatal to Columbus and the colony. Happily, he 
discovered the sedition, and, seizing the leaders, punished 
some of them, sent others, as prisoners, to Spain, whither he, 
at the same time, despatched twelve of the vessels which had 
served as transports, with an earnest request of a reinforce- 
ment of men, and a large supply of provisions. 

Meanwhile, Columbus planned several expeditions into the 
interior of the country. He sent a detachment, under the 
command of Ojeda, to visit the district of Cibao, which was 
reported to yield the greatest quantity of gold, and followed 
him, in person, with the main body of his troops. In this 
expedition, he displayed all the pomp of military magnifi- 
cence that he could exhibit, in order to strike the imagination 
of the natives. He marched with colours flying, with mar- 
tial music, and with a small body of cavalry, which paraded 
sometimes in the front, and sometimes in the rear. As those 



44 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

were the first horses seen in the new world, they were ob- 
jects no less of terror, than of admiration, to the Indians, 
who, having no tame animals themselves, were unacquainted 
with the vast accession of power which man has acquired, 
by subjecting them to his dominion. They conceived them 
to be rational creatures. They supposed that the horse and 
the rider formed one animal, at whose speed they were asto- 
nished, and whose impetuosity and strength they considered 
irresistible. 

But while Columbus endeavoured to inspire the natives 
with a dread of his power, he did not neglect the arts of con- 
fidence and love. In all his transactions with them, he ad- 
hered scrupulously to the principles of integrity and justice ; 
and treated them, on every occasion, not only with humanity, 
but indulgence. 

The district of Cibao corresponded with the description 
given of it by the natives. It was mountainous and unculti- 
vated; but, in every river and brook, gold was gathered, 
either in dust or in grains, some of which were of consider- 
able size. The Indians had never opened any mines, in 
search of gold. The small quantity of that precious metal 
possessed by them, was either picked up in the beds of the 
rivers, or washed from the mountains by heavy rains. But, 
from those indications, the Spaniards could no longer doubt 
that the country contained rich treasures within its bowels. 
In order to insure the command of this valuable province, 
Columbus erected a small fort ; to which, he gave the name 
of St. Thomas, by way of ridicule upon some of his incredu- 
lous followers, who would not believe that the country pro- 
duced gold, until they saw it with their own eyes, and 
touched it with their own hands. 

Having quelled the seditious complaints of the restless and 
disaffected at Isabella, Colum.bus resolved to pursue his dis- 
coveries, that he might ascertain whether those new countries, 
with which he had opened a communication, were connected 
with any region of earth already known ; or were to be con- 
sidered as a separate portion of the globe, hitherto unvisited. 
He appointed his brother Don Diego, aided by a council of 
officers, to govern the island during his absence. 

He weighed anchor on the 24th of April, with one ship 
and two small barks. When passing amongst a labyrinth 
of small islands which he named the Queen's Garden, he was 
assailed by a most violent storm. Fortunately, it was not of 
long continuance, otherwise, his situation would have been 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 45 

extremely perilous, for he found the navigation rendered dif- 
ficult by numerous keys* and sand-banks. When amongst 
these islands, Columbus, one calm evening, beheld a num- 
ber of the natives, in a canoe, occupied in fishing, and was 
struck with the singular means which they employed. They 
had a small fish, the flat head of which was furnished with 
numerous suckers, by which it attached itself so firmly to 
any object, as to be torn to pieces, rather than abandon its 
hold. Having tied a long line to the tail of this fish, the In- 
dians permitted it to swim at large. It generally kept near 
the surface of the water, until it perceived its prey, when, 
darting down swiftly, it attached itself, by the suckers, to 
the throat of the fish, or to the under shell of a tortoise ; nor 
did it relinquish its prey, until both were drawn up by the 
fishermen, and taken out of the water. In this way, the 
Spaniards witnessed the taking of a tortoise of immense size ; 
and Fernando Columbus affirms that he himself saw a shark 
caught in this manner, on the coast of Veragua. 

During a tedious and distressing voyage of five months, 
Columbus made no discovery of importance, except the 
island of Jamaica. Had he persevered in his examination a 
few days longer, he would have been carried round the west- 
ern extremity of Cuba : his illusion, respecting the geogra- 
phical position of that island would have been thus dispelled, 
and an entirely different course have been given to his sub- 
sequent discoveries : in his present conviction, he lived and 
died ; believing, to his last hour, that Cuba was the extremity 
of the Asiatic continent. His provisions were at length 
nearly consumed ; his crew exhausted with fatigue, as well 
as hunger, murmured and threatened, and were ready to 
proceed to the most desperate extremities. Beset with dan- 
ger in so many various forms, he was constrained to keep 
continual watch. On no occasion, had his skill and experi- 
ence as a navigator been so fully tried. This unremitted 
fatigue of body, and intense application of mind, brought on 
a feverish disorder, terminating in a lethargy, which de- 
prived him of sense and memory, and had almost proved 
fatal to his life. 

He was preserved, however, to perform further service to 
^ . . mankind. On his return to Hispaniola, the joy 

^ ' ' felt by him in meeting his brother Bartholomew at 
Isabella, occasioned so lively a flow of spirits, as greatly con- 

* Keys, from cayos, rocks which frequently form small islands on the 
coasts of America, 



46 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

tributed to his recovery. Thirteen years had now elapsed, 
since the two brothers had separated from each other ; and, 
during that long period, there had been no intercourse be- 
tween them. In his voyage to England, Bartholomew Co- 
lumbus was captured by pirates ; who, having robbed him of 
every thing that he possessed, detained h^m, for many years, 
in captivity. When, at length, he arrived at London, his 
indigence was so great, that he was constrained to employ 
himself, during a considerable time, in drawing and selling 
maps, in order to furnish means sufficient to purchase decent 
attire, in which to appear at court. He was there treated 
with merited respect. After concluding a successful nego- 
tiation with Henry VH., he set out for Spain, by the way of 
France. At Paris, he received an account of the extraordi- 
nary discovery made by his brother, in his first voyage, and 
was informed that he was then preparing to embark on a se- 
cond expedition. Though . he continued his journey with 
the utmost despatch, the admiral had sailed for Hispaniola 
l>efore he reached Spain. Ferdinand and Isabella received 
him with the greatest respect ; and, as they knew that his 
presence would be most gratifying and consolatory to his 
brother, they persuaded him to take the command of three 
ships, appointed to carry provisions to the colony at Isabella. 
His arrival, at this time, was no less fortunate, than unex- 
pected. Never had Columbus stood more in need of a friend, 
capable of aiding him by his counsel, and dividing with him 
the cares and burthen of governing a refractory people. The 
licentious and tyrannical conduct of the Spanish soldiers ; the 
scarcity of provisions, caused by their consuming a quantity 
of food, so large, compared with the light repasts to which 
the natives had been accustomed, and had consequently pro- 
portioned their supplies by cultivation, added to the certainty 
now apparent to the Indians, that their visiters intended to 
make a permanent residence in their country : — inflamed by 
these various considerations, with a degree of rage of which 
their gentle natures seemed hardly susceptible, they waited 
only for a signal from their leaders, to assail the colony. 
Several stragglers had already been surprised and cut off, by 
some of the caziques. The dread of this impending danger, 
united the Spaniards, and re-established the authority of Co- 
lumbus ; as they saw no prospect of safety, but in committing 
themselves to his prudent guidance. Though he had hitherto, 
with the greatest solicitude, avoided employing force against 
the Indians, it was now necessary to have recourse to arms» 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 47 

A handful of men was about to encounter a whole nation. 
Two thirds of the original adventurers were dead. They 
had fallen victims either to their licentiousness, or to dis- 
eases engendered by the warmth and humidity of the climate. 
The most formidable enemy of the Spaniards, was Caonabo, 
the cazique of Maguano, the same who had surprised and 
massacred the garrison of La Navidad. He had natural ta- 
lents for war ; a proud and daring spirit to urge him on ; three 
valiant brothers to assist him ; and a numerous tribe at his 
command. His territories lay in the central and mountainous 
parts of the island, rendered difficult of access by rugged 
rocks, entangled forests, and frequent rivers. To make war 
upon this wily and ferocious chieftain, in a country where, 
at every step, there would be danger of falling into some 
sudden ambush, would be a work of time, uncertainty, and 
peril. Meanwhile, the settlements would be exposed to his 
secret and daring enterprises ; and the mines subjected to 
frequent interruption. From this perplexity, Columbus was 
relieved by a bold proposition on the part of Ojeda, who 
offered to take the Carib chieftain by stratagem, and deliver 
him alive into his hands. The project was wild, hazardous, 
and romantic, characteristic of the fearless and adventurous 
spirit of Ojeda. Having chosen ten bold and hardy com- 
panions, well armed, and mounted on the most active horses, 
Ojeda plunged into the forest, and made his way above sixty 
leagues, at the head of his followers, into the wild territories 
of Caonabo, where he found the cazique in one of his most 
populous towns. Ojeda approached Caonabo with great defe- 
rence and respect, treating him as a sovereign prince. He 
informed him that he had come on a friendly embassy from 
the admiral, who had sent him an invaluable present. Cao- 
nabo had encountered Ojeda in battle ; he had witnessed his 
fiery prowess, and had conceived of him a warrior's admira- 
tion. He received him with a degree of chivalrous courtesy, 
and the gallant young soldier soon became a great favourite 
with Caonabo. 

Ojeda now used all his influence to prevail upon the ca- 
zique to repair to Isabella, for the purpose of making a treaty 
with Columbus, and becoming his ally and friend. It is said 
that he offered him as a lure, the bell of the chapel of that 
place, ^vhicli was the wonder of the island. The cazique 
agreed to accompany him to Isabella ; but, when the time 
came to depart, Ojeda beheld, with surprise, a powerful force 
of warriors assembled, and ready to march. He inquired the 



48 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

design of taking such an army on a mere friendly visit; to 
which, the cazique proudly replied, that it was not befitting 
a great prince like him, to go forth scantily attended. Ojeda 
felt little satisfied with this reply : he knew the subtle charac- 
ter of Caonabo ; he feared some sinister design, and that the 
chieftain meditated a surprise of the fortress of Isabella, or 
an attempt upon the person of the admiral. He knew also 
that it was the wish of Columbus, either to make peace with 
the cazique, or to get possession of his person without being 
compelled to open war. He had recourse to a stratagem, 
therefore, which, though recorded by all the cotemporary 
historians, has the air of fable and romance. While on their 
march, having halted near the bank of a river, Ojeda one day 
produced a set of manacles of polished steel, so highly bur- 
nished that they looked like silver. He assured Caonabo that 
these were royal ornaments which had come from heaven ; 
that they were worn by the monarchs of Castile, at solemn 
dances, and other high festivities, and were intended as pre- 
sents to the cazique. He proposed that Caonabo should go 
to the river and bathe ; after which, he should be decorated 
with these ornaments, mounted upon the horse of Ojeda, and 
return in the state of a Spanish monarch, to astonish his sub- 
jects. The cazique, with that fondness for glittering orna- 
ments which is common to savages, was dazzled with the 
sight ; and his proud military spirit, also, was flattered with 
the idea of bestriding one of those tremendous animals, so 
dreaded by his countrymen. He accompanied Ojeda and his 
party to the river, with only few attendants, dreading nothing 
from nine or ten strangers, when thus surrounded by his ar- 
my. After the cazique had bathed in the river, he was as- 
sisted to mount behind Ojeda, and the shackles were then 
adjusted. This done, they pranced around amongst the 
savages ; Ojeda making several circuits, to gain space, fol- 
lowed by his little band of horsemen ; the Indians shrinking 
back with affright from the capering steeds. At length, he 
made a wide sweep into the forest, until shut from the sight 
of the army by the trees. His followers then closed around 
him, and, drawing their swords, threatened Caonabo with in- 
stant death, if he made the smallest noise. They bound him, 
with cords, to Ojeda, to prevent his falling, or effecting an 
escape ; then, putting spurs to their horseSj they dashed across 
the river, and escaped through the woods, with their prize. 

Ojeda entered Isabella in triumph, with his wild Indian 
warrior bound behind him, a captive. Columbus could not 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 49 

refrain from expressing his great satisfaction, when this dan- 
gerous enemy was delivered into his hands. The haughty 
Carib disdained to conciliate him by submission, or to de- 
preciate his vengeance for the blood which he had shed of 
white men. He boasted of his achievement in surprising 
and burning the f<Drtress of La Navidad, and slaughtering its 
garrison, and declared that he had secretly reconnoitred Isa- 
bella, with the intention of wreaking upOn it the same deso- 
lation. 

The captivity of Caonabo was deeply felt by his subjects. 
One of his brothers, a warrior of great courage and address, 
led an army of more than 7,000 men, secretly, to the neigh- 
bourhood of St. Thomas, where Ojeda was again in command, 
with the design of capturing a number of Spaniards, in the 
hope of obtaining Caonabo in exchange* The attempt, how- 
ever, was frustrated by the vigilance of Ojeda. Leaving a 
sufficient force as a garrison, with the remainder, consisting 
of a small body of infantry and horse, he sallied forth to meet 
the approaching enemy, and, rushing furiously upon them, 
they were seized with a sudden panic. They threw dov/n 
their weapons, and fled : many were slain, more were taken 
prisoners, and amongst the latter was the brother of Caonabo, 
bravely fighting in a pious but desperate cause. 

The captivity of their beloved caziques, served rather to 
increase than diminish the hostility of the Indians against 
the Spaniards. Caonabo had still active and powerful rela- 
tives remaining, to attempt his rescue or revenge his fall. 
Scarcely had Columbus recovered his health, when he re- 
ceived intelligence that the allied caziques were assembled, 
in great force, in the valley within two days march of Isabella, 
with an intention of making a general assault upon the set- 
tlement, and overwhelming it by numbers. Columbus re- 
solved to enter the field at once, and to carry the v/ar into 
the territory of the enemy, rather than suffer it to be brought 
^ . Qf. to his own doors. He issued forth from Isabella on 
* the 24th of March. His little army consisted only of 
two-hundred foot, twenty horse, and twenty large dogs ; of 
the species called blood-hounds ; and, strange as it may seem, 
to mention the last as composing part of a military force, 
they were not perhaps less formidable than the soldiers, when 
employed against naked Indians. 

All the caziques of the island, then at liberty, Guacanahari 
excepted, were at length in arms to oppose Columbus, with 
E 



5d HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

, \ 

forces amounting, according to the Spanish historians, to one* 
hundred thousand men. But, instead of attempting to draw 
the Spaniards into the fastnesses of the woods and mountains^ 
they were so imprudent as to take their station in the most 
open plain in the country. Columbus did not allow them 
time to perceive their error, or to alter their position. He 
attacked them during the night, and obtained an easy and 
bloodless victory. Many of the Indians were slain ; more 
were taken prisoners, and reduced to servitude ; and, so 
thoroughly were the rest intimidated, that, from that moment, 
they abandoned themselves to despair, relinquishing all 
thoughts of contending with aggressors whom they deemed 
invincible. 

Several months were employed by Columbus, in marching 
through the island, and subjecting it to the Spanish govern- 
inent, without meeting any opposition. He imposed a tri- 
bute upon all the inhabitants above the age of fourteen. 
Each person who lived in those districts which yielded gold, 
was obliged to pay, every quarter of a year, as much gold 
dust as would fill a hawk's bell ; while, from those in other 
parts of the country, there were demanded twenty-five pounds 
of cotton. This was the first regular taxation of the Indians, 
and served as a precedent for still more intolerable exactions. 
Such an imposition was entirely at variance with the max- 
ims hitherto inculcated by Columbus, with respect to the 
tnode of treating them. But intrigues then existed at the 
fcourt of Spain, excited chiefly by Margarita and Father Boyl, 
who had clandestinely returned to Europe, for the purpose 
of undermining his power and discrediting his operations, 
which caused him to depart from his own system of adminis- 
tration. Columbus saw that there was only one method of 
supporting his own credit, and silencing his adversaries. He 
must produce so ^large a quantity of gold, as would not only 
justify his representations in regard to the richness of the 
country, but encourage Ferdinand and Isabella to persevere 
in prosecuting his plans : the necessity of obtaining it may 
therefore be pleaded, as some extenuation of his deviating, 
on this occasion, from the mildness and humanity with which 
he almost universally treated this unhappy people. 

To enforce the payment of these tributes, and to maintain 
the subjection of the island, Columbus put the fortress already 
built in a strong state of defence, and erected others. 

" In this way," to use the beautiful and pathetic language 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 51 

of an admired writer,* " was the yoke of servitude fixed upon 
the island, and its thraldom effectually secured. Deep despair 
now fell upon the natives, when they found a perpetual task 
inflicted upon them, enforced at stated and frequently recur- 
ring periods. Weak and indolent by nature, unused to labour 
of any kind, and brought up in the untasked idleness of their 
soft climate and their fruitful groves, death itself seemed 
preferable to a life of toil and anxiety. They saw no end to 
this harassing evil, which had so suddenly fallen upon them^ 
no escape from its all-pervading influence, no prospect of re^ 
turn to that roving independence and ample leisure, so dear 
to the wild inhabitant of the forest. The pleasant life of the 
island was at an end ; the dream in the shade by day, the 
slumber during the sultry noontide heat by the fountain or 
the stream, or under the spreading palm-tree ; and the song, 
the dance, and the game, in the mellow evening, when sum- 
moned to their simple amusements by the rude Indian drum. 
They were now obliged to grope, day by day, with bending 
body and anxious eye, along the borders of their rivers, sift- 
ing the sands for the grains of gold which every day grew 
more scanty ; or to labour in their fields, beneath the fervour 
of a tropical sun, to raise food for their task-masters, or to 
produce the vegetable tribute imposed upon them. They 
sunk to sleep, weary and exhausted, at night, with the cer- 
tainty that the next day was to be only a repetition of the 
same toil and su^ring ; or, if they occasionally indulged in 
their national dances, the ballads to which they kept time 
were of a melancholy and plaintive strain." 

The Indians formed a scheme of starving those oppressors 
whom they durst not attempt to expel. With this view, they 
suspended all the operations of agriculture : they sowed no 
maize; they pulled up the roots of the manioc or cassada, 
which had been planted ; and, retiring to the least accessible 
parts of the mountain, left their uncultivated plains to their 
enemies. This desperate resolution produced, in some degree, 
the anticipated effect. The Spaniards were reduced to ex^ 
treme want ; but they received so seasonable supplies of pro- 
visions from Europe, and found so many resources in their 
own ingenuity and industry, that they suffered no great loss 
of men. 

The wretched Indians became the victims of their own ill^ 

* Washington Irving. 



52 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICAu 

concerted policy. In the course of a few months, after ex- 
periencing misery in all its various forms, more than one 
third of the inhabitants of the island perished, by famine 
and disease. 

Meanwhile, the enemies of Columbus laboured, with un- 
ceasing assiduity, to tarnish his glory, and deprive him of his 
merited rewards. The accusations against him gained so 
much credit in a jealous court, that a commissioner was ap- 
pointed to repair to Hispaniola, to investigate his conduct. 
By the recommendation of his enemies, Aguado, a groom of 
the bed-chamber, was the person to whom was committed this 
important trust. But, in this choice, they seem to have been 
more influenced by the obsequious attachment of the man to 
their interest, than by his capacity for the station. By lis- 
tening with eagerness to every accusation against Columbus, 
he fermented the spirit of dissension in the island, instead of 
redressing the many wrongs, with the odium of which he 
wished to load the admiral's administration. As Columbus 
felt deeply how humiliating must be his situation, if he re- 
mained in the country while so partial an inspector observed 
his motions, he determined to return to Spain, that he might 
lay a full account of all his transactions before Ferdinand 
T AQR ^^^ Isabella. The administration of affairs, during 
his absence, he committed to Don Bartholomew, his 
brother, v/ith the title of Adelantado, or lieutenant-governor ; 
and, by a choice less fortunate, he appointed Francis Roldaa 
chief-justice, with very extensive powers. 

Columbus sailed from Isabella, on his return to Europe, 
with two caravels, on the 10th of March. In one of these 
vessels, was Aguado. There were thirty Indians, also, on 
board of the caravels, amongst whom were Caonabo, one of 
his brathers, and a nephew ; Columbus having promised the 
cazique and his brother to restore them to their country, and 
reinstate them in their power, after he had taken them to visit 
the king and queen of Castile. But in the course of the 
voyage, the unfortunate Caonabo died. He maintained his 
haughty nature to the last ; and his death is ascribed chiefly 
to the corroding melancholy of a praud but broken spirit. 

The course now held by Columbus was different from that 
which he had taken in his former voyage. He steered almost 
due east from Hispaniola, in the parallel of twenty-two north 
latitude, as experience had not yet discovered the more cer- 
tain and expeditious method of keeping to the norths in cyder 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 53 

to fall in with the south-west winds, which blow, without va- 
riation, from the east between the tropics, and made so little 
way, that he was three months without seeing land. 

On arriving at Cadiz, he found three vessels in the harbour, 
commanded by Pedro Alonzo Nigno, on the point of sailing 
with supplies for the colony. 

He appeared at the Spanish court with the modest but de- 
termined confidence of a man, conscious, not only of inte- 
grity, but of having performed great services to Spain. 
Ashamed of their own facility, in lending too favourable an 
ear to frivolous or ill-founded accusations, Ferdinand and 
Isabella received him with so distinguished marks of respect, 
as covered his enemies with shame. Their censures and 
calumnies were no more heard, at that juncture. His royal 
patrons resolved to supply the colony in Hispaniola with every 
thing that could render it a permanent establishment, and to 
furnish Columbus with such a fleet as would enable him to 
search for those new countries, of the existence of which he 
seemed confident. The precise number of adventurers, who 
should be permitted to embark, was fixed, and the new set- 
tlers were to be accompanied by a suitable number of women. 

Thus far, the regulations were prudent, and well adapted 
to the end in view. But, in order to hasten the progress of 
the infant colony, Columbus proposed that there should be 
transported to Hispaniola, such malefactors as had been con- 
victed of crimes, which, although capital, were not, in the 
highest degree, atrocious ; and that, in future, a certain pro- 
portion of the offenders, usually sent to the gallies, should be 
condemned to labour in the mines. This advice, given with- 
out due reflection, was as inconsiderately adopted. The 
prisons of Spain were emptied, in order to collect members 
for the intended colony ; and the judges, impowered to try 
criminals, were instructed to recruit it by their future sen- 
tences ; a deeply pernicious policy, which caused the most 
unhappy effects. 

. . Q^ The hostility of the great navigator's enemies, was 
too inveterate to remain long inactive. So many ob- 
stacles were thrown in the way, to retard the operations for 
his expedition, that more than a year elapsed, before he could 
procure two ships to carry a part of the supplies destined for 
the colony, and almost two years were spent, before the small 
squadron was equipped, of which he himself was to assume 
the command. 

e2 



54 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

CHAPTER IV. 

THE THIRD VOYAGE OF COLUMBUS. 

HE DISCOVEHS THE ISLAND OF TRINIDAD, THE CONTINENT OF 
AMERICA, THE MOUTH OF THE ORONOCO, AND THE ISLANDS 

OF MARGARITA AND CUBAGUA. ST. DOMINGO FOUNDED BY 

BARTHOLOMEW COLUMBUS. THE NEW WORLD NAMED AF- 
TER AMERIGO VESPUCIO. BRAZIL DISCOVERED , BY PEDRO 

ALVAREZ CABRAL. COLUMBUS AND HIS TWO BROTHERS ARE 

BROUGHT HOME IN CHAINS. 

1 AQR Tmi third voyage of Columbus was commenced on 
the 30th of May. He sailed from the port of St. 
Lucar de Barrameda ; his squadron consisting- of only six ves- 
sels, of small burthen, and not fully provided for a long and 
dangerous navigation. The voyage now meditated by this 
adventurous seaman, was in a course different from any that 
he had before undertaken. As he was fully persuaded, that 
the fertile regions of India lay to the south of those coun- 
tries which he had already discovered, he proposed, as the 
most certain method of finding out the former, to steer di- 
rectly south from the Canary or Cape de Verd islands, until 
he came under the equinoctial line^and then to stretch to the 
west, before the wind favourable for such a course, which 
blows invariably between the tropics. He touched first at 
the Canary, and then at the Cape de Verd islands. From 
the former, he despatched three of his ships, with a supply 
of provisions for the colony ; with the other three, he con- 
tinued his voyage towards the south. No remarkable occur- 
rence happened, until the 19th of July, when they were 
within five degrees of the equator. There, they were be- 
calmed, and, at the same time, the heat became so excessive, 
that the tar melted, the seams of the ships opened, many of 
their wine-casks burst, the liquor in others soured, and their 
salted provisions became putrid. The Spaniards, who had 
never before ventured so far to the south, feared that the 
ships would take fire, and began to apprehend the reality of 
what the ancients had affirmed, respecting the destructive 
atmosphere of the torrid zone. They were relieved, in some 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA, 55 

measure, from their fears, by a fall of rain. This, however, 
though so heavy and unremitting, that the men could hardly 
remain on deck, did not greatly mitigate the intenseness of 
the heat : Columbus, therefore, exhausted by fatigue and 
want of sleep, was constrained to yield to the importunities 
of his crew, and to alter his course to the north-west, in order 
to search some of the Caribbee islands, where he might be 
supplied with provisions, and refit. 

C)n the 1st of August, the man stationed on the round-top 
surprised them with the joyous cry of land. The summits 
of three mountains were seen above the horizon. As the 
ships approached nearer, it was observed that these moun- 
tains were joined together at their base. Columbus had de- 
termined to consecrate the first land that he should behold, 
by giving it the name of the Trinity. The appearance of 
these three mountains, united into one, struck him as a sin- 
gular and almost miraculous coincidence; with a solemn 
feeling of devotion, therefore, in conformity with the super- 
stitious impressions which guided him in all his actions, he 
gave this newly-discovered island the name of La Trinidad, 
which it continues to bear to the present day. It lies oflT the 
coast of Guiana, near the mouth of the Orinoco. This, al- 
though a river of only the third or fourth class, in the i^ew 
world, far surpasses any of the streams in the eastern hemi- 
sphere. It rolls towards the ocean so vast a body of water, 
and rushes into it with so impetuous a force, that, when it 
meets the tide, which on that coiast rises to an uncommon 
height, their collision occasions a swell and agitation of the 
waves, not less surprising than formidable. With the utmost 
difficulty, Columbus escaped through a narrow strait, which 
appeared so tremendous, that he called it La Boca del Drago, 
or the Dragon's Mouth. 

As soon as the consternation excited by this phenomenon 
permitted him to reflect upon the nature of an appearance so 
extraordinary, he discerned in it a source of comfort and 
hope. He justly concluded, that so vast a body of water 
could not be supplied by any island, but must flow through 
a country of immense extent ; and consequently that he had 
now, without the smallest doubt, reached that continent which 
tt had long been the object of his wishes to discover. He 
steered to the west, along the coast of those provinces known 
by the names of Paria and Cumana. He landed i«i several 
places, and had some intercourse with the people, who resem- 



56 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

bled those of Hispaniola in their appearance and manner of 
life. They wore, as ornaments, small plates of gold, and 
pearls of considerable value, which they willingly exchanged 
for European toys. They seemed to possess more intelligence, 
and greater courage, than the inhabitants of the islands. 
The country produced four-footed animals of several kinds, 
as well as a great variety of fowls and fruits. Columbus was 
so much delighted with its beauty and fertility, that, with the 
warm enthusiasm of a discoverer, he imagined it to be the 
Paradise described in Scripture. Here, he supposed to be 
situated the original abode of our first parents, the Garden 
of Eden, the primitive seat of human innocence and bliss. 
He imagined this place to be still flourishing in all its inef- 
fable delights, but inaccessible to mortal feet, except by di- 
vine permission, according to the opinion of the most eminent 
fathers of the church. From the elevated region of the 
earth, which he conceived to lie near the equator, he pre- 
sumed flowed the mighty stream of fresh water which filled 
the gulf of Paria ; being supplied by the fountain mentioned 
in Genesis, as springing from the tree of life. 

Thus, Columbus was the first man that conducted the Spa- 
niards* to that vast continent, which, for more than two cen- 
turies, was the chief seat of their empire, and the source of 
their treasures in that quarter of the globe. 

Circumstances did not permit him, at this time, to extend 
his examination of that country as far as he desired. The 
shattered condition of his ships, the scarcity of provisions, his 
own infirmities, together with the impatience of his crew, 
prevented him from pursuing his discoveries any farther, and 
made it necessary to bear away for Hispaniola; with the in- 
tention of resuming the object of his voyage at a future day. 
In his way thither, he discovered several small islands ; 
amongst which, were Margarita and Cubagua, afterwards fa- 
mous for their pearl fisheries. 

When he arrived at Hispaniola, in the latter end of August, 
he was wasted in an extreme degree, by fatigue and sick- 
ness, and was almost blind; yet he found the affairs of the 
colony in such a state of confusion, as afforded him no pros- 
pect of repose. Many revolutions had happened, during his 

* Profiting by the discoveries of Columbus, Sebastian Cabot, a native of 
Bristol, commissioned by Henry VII. of England, had reached the coast 
of Labrador, in North Americaj in June 1497- 



mSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 57 

absence. In consequence of advice given by Columbus, be- 
fore his departure, his brother had removed the colony from 
Isabella, to a more commodious station, on the opposite side 
of the island, and laid the foundation of St. Domingo. In 
the mean time, the natives made another endeavour to regain 
their liberty ; and a revolt, of an aspect far more alarming, 
was excited by Francis Roldan, whom Columbus had ap- 
pointed chief-justice of the island. The mutineers endea- 
voured to surprise the fort at St. Domingo ; but they were 
defeated by the vigilance and courage of Don Diego Colum- 
bus, and compelled to return to the province of Xaragua; 
where they continued not only to disclaim the adalantado's 
authority themselves, but excited the Indians to throw off the 
yoke. 

Such was the distracted state of the colony, when Colum- 
bus landed at St. Domingo. He was astonished to find that 
the three ships despatched by him from the Canaries, had 
not yet arrived. By the unskilfulness of the pilots, and the 
violence of the currents, they had been carried a hundred- 
and-sixty miles to the west of St. Domingo, and forced to 
take shelter in a harbour of the province of Xaragua, where 
Holdan and his seditious followers were cantoned. Roldan 
concealed from the commanders of the ships his insurrection 
against the adalantado ; and, employing his utmost address to 
gain their confidence, persuaded them to set on shore a con- 
siderable part of the new settlers, under a pretext that they 
might proceed by land to St. Domingo. It required few ar- 
guments with these men to induce them to espouse his cause. 
They were criminals released from the jails of Spain, and they 
returned eagerly to a course of life nearly resembling that to 
which they had been accustomed. 

By this junction with a band of bold and desperate associ- 
ates, Roldan became extremely formidable, and no less ex- 
travagant in his demands. But, though filled with resent- 
ment at his ingratitude, and highly exasperated by the 
insolence of his followers, Columbus made no haste to take 
the field. Trembling at the thoughts of kindling a civil war, 
in which, whatever party prevailed, the strength and power 
of both must be so much wasted, as might encourage the 
common enemy to unite and complete their destruction, he 
chose rather to negociate than to fight. This mode of paci- 
fication proved successful. Gradually, and without blood- 
sheds he dissolved this dangerous combination j which had 



58 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

threatened the colony with ruin ; and restored the appearance 
of regular government and order. 

- . QQ In consequence of this agreement with the muti- 
* neers, lands were allotted them in different parts of 
the island ; and the Indians settled in each district were ap- 
pointed to cultivate a certain portion of ground, for the use 
of these new masters. The performance of this work, was 
substituted in place of the tribute formerly imposed ; and in- 
troduced amongst the Spaniards, the repartimiento^, or dis- 
tribution of Indians, established by them in all their settle- 
ments ; which brought innumerable calamities upon that 
unhappy people, subjected them to the most grievous oppres- 
sion, and greatly contributed to exterminate them from the 
island of Hispaniola. 

At this stage of our narrative, it is proper to take a view 
of some events, which merit attention, both on account of 
their own importance, and their connexion with the history 
of the new world. 

In the summary account, which, previous to our entering 
upon the voyages of Columbus, we gave of the gradual pro- 
gress of discovery in the eastern hemisphere, we last alluded 
to the advance of Diaz within view of the great southern cape 
of Africa. Rather stimulated than depressed by the amaz- 
ing issue of the patronage which they had denied Columbus, 
the Portuguese attentively pursued their favourite object. 
Their endeavours were crowned with success. On the 
20th of November, in the year 1497, Vasco de Gama, era- 
ployed by the king of Portugal, passed that celebrated pro- 
montory, and, on the 22nd of May, 1498, arrived at Calicut, 
on the coast of Malabar. 

Vast objects were now presented for speculation. Roused 
and interested by the inviting prospect, the human mind en- 
gaged with ardour in their pursuit, and exerted its active 
powers in every direction. All the attempts towards discove- 
ry, made by the Spaniards, had hitherto been conducted by 
Columbus alone, at the expense chiefly of the crown. But 
private adventurers now offered to fit out squadrons at their 
own risk, and go in quest of new countries ; and the Spanish 
court, whose scanty revenues were exhausted by its expedi- 
tions to the new world, was not unwilling to transfer the 
burthen of discovery to its subjects. One of the first propo- 
sitions of this kind, was made by Ojeda. His rank and cha- 
racter procured hini so much credit with the merchants of 



History of south America. 5^ 

Seville, that they undertook to equip four ships, provided he 
could obtain the royal licence. A suit so agreeable to the 
court V7as not rejected. Without consulting Columbus, or 
regarding the rights and jurisdiction vested in him by the 
j^ contract of 1492, Ojeda was permitted to set out for 
^' the new world. In order to direct his course, he was 
furnished, by one of the courtiers, with the admiral's journal 
of his last voyage, and his charts of the countries which he 
had discovered. The principal pilot of the expedition, was 
Juan de la Cosa; a mariner of great repute, who had been 
instructed by the admiral, had accompanied him in his first 
voyage of discovery, and in that along the southern coast of 
Cuba ; and around the island of Jamaica. There were seve- 
ral also of the mariners, and Bartholomew Roldan, a distin- 
guished pilot, who had been with Columbus in his voyage to 
Paria. Ojeda entered upon no new path of navigation ; but, 
adhering to the route previously taken by Columbus, arrived 
on the Parian coast. He traded with the natives, and steer- 
ing to the west, proceeded as far as Cape de Vela, and ranged 
along a considerable extent of coast, beyond that visited by 
Columbus. Having thus confirmed the opinion of Columbus, 
that this country was a part of the continent, Ojeda returned, 
by way of Hispaniola, to Spain, with some reputation as a 
discoverer, but with little benefit to those who had provided 
the funds for the expedition. 

In this voyage, Ojeda was accompanied by a gentleman of 
Florence, Americo Vespucio. In what station, he served, is 
uncertain ; but as he was an experienced sailor, and emi- 
nently skilful in all the sciences subservient to navigation, 
his companions seem to have willingly allowed him a chief 
share in directing the voyage. Soon after his return, lie 
transmitted an account of his adventures and discoveries to 
one of his countrymen ; and he had the address to frame his 
narrative, so as to make it appear that to him was due the 
glory of having first discovered the continent in the new 
world. Americo's account was drawn up not only with art, 
but with some elegance. The country of which he was sup- 
posed to be the discoverer, came gradually to be called by 
his naine : the caprice of mankind has perpetuated this error ; 
and by the universal consent of all nations, America is the 
name given to this new quarter of the globe. 

During the same year, another voyage of discovery was 
undertaken. Pedro Alonzo Nigno, who had served under the 



eO mS-TORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

admiral in his last expedition, fitted out a caravel of Mt^ tons, 
in conjunction with Christopher Guerra, a wealthy merchant 
of Seville. Having arrived on the coast of Terra Firma, south 
of Paria, they ran along it for some distance, passed through 
the gulf, and thence west, one-hundred-and-thirty leagues, 
along the coast of the present republic of Colombia ; visiting 
what was afterwards called the pearl-coast. They landed in 
several places, disposed of their European trifles at immense 
profit, and returned with a large quantity of gold and pearls ; 
having made, in their diminutive vessel, one of the most ex- 
tensive and lucrative voyages that had yet been accomplished. 
Soon afterwards, Vincent Pinzon, one of the admiral's com- 
panions in his first voyage, sailed from Palos, with four cara- 
1 500 ^^^^ ' ^^^' standing boldly towards the south, was the 
first Spaniard that crossed the equinoctial line ; but 
he seems not to have landed on any part of the coast beyond 
the mouth of the Maragnon, or river of the Amazons. 

All those navigators adopted the erroneous theory of Co- 
lumbus, and believed that the countries which they had dis- 
covered were part of the vast continent of India. 

In the last year of the fifteenth century, that fertile dis- 
trict of America, on the confines of which Pinzon had ar- 
rested his progress, was more fully discovered. The successful 
voyage of Gama to the East Indies, having encouraged the 
king of Portugal to fit out a fleet so powerful as not only to 
prosecute trade with the magnificent countries of v/hich he 
had brought accounts, but to attempt their conquest, he gave 
the command of it to Pedro Alvarez Cabral. He sailed on 
the 15th of March. In order to avoid the coast of Africa, 
where he was certain of meeting with variable breezes, or 
frequent calms which would retard his voyage, Cabral stood 
out to sea, and kept so far to the west, that, to his surprise, 
on the 25th of April, he found himself on the shore of an un- 
known country, in the tenth degree beyond the line. He 
imagined, at first, that it was some island in the Atlantic 
Ocean, hitherto unobserved ; but, proceeding along its coast, 
rather beyond the 15th degree of southern latitude, he was 
led to believe, that a country so extensive formed a part of 
some great continent. This latter opinion was well founded. 
The country with which he had fallen in, belongs to that 
province in South America, nov/ known by the name of 
Brazil. He landed ; and, having formed a very favourable 
idea of the fertility of the soil, and agreeables of the climate, 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 61 

he took possession of it for the crown of Portugal, and de^^ 
spatched a ship to Lisbon, with an account of this event, 
which appeared no less important than unexpected. 

In this way, did the Brazils come into the possession of 
Portugal ,• being to the eastward of the connectional line, set- 
tled with Spain as the boundary of their respective territories. 

While the Spaniards and Portuguese, by those successive 
voyages, were daily acquiring more enlarged ideas of the ex- 
tent and opulence of that quarter of the globe which Colum- 
bus had made known to them, he himself was struggling with 
every distress in which the envy and malevolence of the peo- 
ple under his command, or the ingratitude of the court, could 
involve him. A great number of those persons who were 
most dissatisfied with his administration, had returned to Eu- 
rope, in the ships which he had despatched from St. DJomiii- 
go. The final disappointment of all their hopes, inflamed 
the rage of these unfortunate adventurers against Columbus, 
to the highest pitch. Their poverty and distress, by excit- 
ing compassion, rendered their accusations credible, and 
their complaints interesting. They incessantly teased Fer- 
dinand and Isabella with memorials, containing a detail of 
their own grievances, and the articles of their charge against 
Columbus ; and demanded vengeance upon the author of 
their sufferings. They even found their way to the court at 
Granada. They followed the king when he rode out, filling 
the air with their complaints, and clamouring for their pay. 
At one time, about fifty of those vagrants penetrated into the 
inner court of the Alhambra, under the royal apartments, 
holding up bunches of grapes, as the meagre diet left them 
by their poverty, and railing aloud at the deceits of Colum- 
bus, and the cruel neglect of government. The two sons of 
Columbus, at that time pages to the queen, happening to 
pass by, they followed them with imprecations, exclaiming, 
" There go the sons of the admiral, the whelps of him who 
discovered the land of vanity and delusion, the grave of Spa- 
nish hidalgoes !"* 

Those avowed endeavours of the malcontents from Ameri- 
ca, to ruin Columbus, were seconded by the secret, but more 
dangerous insinuations of that party amongst the courtiers, 
which had always thwarted his schemes, and envied his suc- 
cess and credit. 

* Hidalgo, in Spanish, signifies a person of the rank of gentleman^ 
F 



62 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

Ferdinand was disposed to listen to these accusations, not 
only with a willing, but with a partial ear. Notwithstanding 
the flattering accounts given by Columbus of the riches of 
Anieriea, the remittances from it had hitherto been so trifling, 
that they were much less in amount than the expenses in- 
curred by the adventurers. The glory of the discovery, toge- 
ther with the prospect of remote commercial advantages, was 
all that Spain bad yet received^ in return for her continued 
efibrts. Ferdinand therefore considered Spain as having lost 
by the enterprise of Columbus ; and imputed to his miscon- 
duct and incapacity for government, that a country abound- 
ing in gold had yielded nothing valuable to its conquerors. 
Even Isabella, who had uniformly protected him, was at length 
shaken by the number and boldness of his accusers, and be- 
gan to suspect that a disaffection so general j niust have been 
occasioned by real grievances, which called for redress. 

But there were circumstances connected with the adminis- 
tration of Columbus, by which the queen was particularly 
affected. Having taken a maternal interest in the welfare of 
the natives, she had been repeatedly offended by what ap- 
peared, to her, pertinacity on the part of the admiral, in con- 
tinuing to make slaves of the Indians taken in warfare, in 
contradiction of her known wishes. The same ships which 
brought home the companions of Roldan, brought likewise 
a great number of slaves. Some, Columbus had been obliged 
to grant to these men by the articles of capitulation ; others, 
they had carried away clandestinely. Amongst them, were 
several daughters of caziques, who had been seduced away 
from their families by these profligates. Some of these were 
likely soon to become mothers ; others had new-born infants. 
This was represented, in all its force, to Isabella, and de- 
scribed as the gratuitous act of Columbus. Her sensibility 
as a woman was excited ; her dignity as a queen invaded. 
She ordered all the Indians to be restored to their country 
and friends : she commanded that those formerly sent to Spain 
by the admiral, should be sought for, and sent back to His- 
paniola. Unfortunately for Columbus, at this very juncture, 
in one of his letters he had advised the continuance of In- 
dian slavery, for some time longer^ as a measure important 
for the welfare of the colony. This contributed to heighten 
the indignation of Isabella, and induced hel" no longer to op- 
pose the sending out of a commission to supersede him in 
command. A resolution was therefore taken, fatal to Colum- 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AIVIERICA. 63 

bus. Francisco de Bovadilla, a commander of the military 
and religious order of Calatrava, was appointed to repair to 
Hispaniola, with full powers to enquire into the conduct of 
_the admiral ; and, if he should find the charge of mal-admi- 
nistration proved, to supersede him in the government. Never 
was there issued a more irrational or unjust commission. It 
was impossible to escape condemnation, when it was the in- 
terest of the judge to convict the person whom he was sent 
to try. Though Columbus had now composed all the dissen- 
sions in the island, and placed every thing in such a state, as 
promised considerable gain to individuals, and a large reve- 
nue to the king, yet Bovadilla evinced, from the moment 
when he landed in Hispaniola, a determined purpose of treat- 
ing him as a criminal. He took possession of the admiral's 
house in St. Domingo, and seized his property and writings, 
as if his guilt had been fully proved ; he rendered himself 
master of the fort and of the public stores by violence ; he 
required all persons to acknowledge him as supreme governor, 
and summoned him to appear before his tribunal, to answer 
for his conduct. 

Columbus submitted to the will of his sovereigns with re- 
spectful silence, and repaired instantly to the court of their 
violent and partial judge. Without admitting him into his 
presence, Bovadilla ordered him, together with his two bro- 
thers, immediately to be arrested, to be put in irons, and im- 
prisoned in the fortress. When the irons were brought, every 
one present shrunk from the task of putting them upon Co- 
lumbus, either from a sentiment of compassion at so great a 
reverse of fortune, or an habitual reverence for his person. 
To fill the measure of ingratitude meted out to him, it was 
one of his own domestics, " a graceless and shameless cook," 
says a cotemporary historian,* "who, with unwashed front, 
applied to him the manacles, as though he were serving him 
with choice and savoury viands." 

St, Domingo now swarmed with miscreants, just delivered 
from the dungeon and the gibbet. Every base villain who 
had been awed into obsequiousness by Columbus and his bro- 
thers, when in power, now started up to revenge himself upon 
them, when in chains. The most injurious slanders were 
loudly proclaimed in the streets ; insulting pasquinades, and 
inflammatory libels were placarded at the corners ; and horns 

* Las Casas. 



64 HISTORY OF SOUTH AJMERICA. 

were blown in the neighbourhood of their prisons, to taunt 
them with the exultings of the rabble. 

All accusations, the most improbable, as well as incon- 
sistent, were received against Columbus. No informer, how- 
ever infamous, was rejected. The result of this indecent 
inquest, Bovadilla transmitted to Spain. At the same time, 
he ordered Columbus, with his twa brothers, to be carried 
thither, in chains ; and, adding cruelty to insult, he confined 
them in different ships. 

Fortunately, the voyage to Spain was short. As soon as 
Ferdinand and Isabella were informed that Columbus was 
brought home a prisoner, and in chains, they perceived what 
universal astonishment this event must occasion, and what an 
impression it must make to their disadvantage. Ashamed 
of their own conduct, and eager not only to make some re- 
paration for this injury, but efface the stain which it must fix 
jy -, ^ upon their character,, they instantly issued orders 
to set Columbus at liberty, invited him to court, 
and remitted money to enable him to appear there in a man- 
ner suitable to his rank. When he entered the rayal presence,. 
Columbus threw himself at his sovereigns' feet, and remained 
for some time silent. At length, he recovered from his agi- 
tation, and vindicated his conduct in a long discourse ; pro- 
ducing the most satisfactory proofs of his own integrity, as 
well as good intention, and evidence, no less clear, of the 
malevoJence of his enemies ; who, not satisfied with having 
ruined his fortune, laboured to deprive him of what alone 
was now left — -his honour and his fame. Ferdinand received 
him with decent civility ; Isabella, with tenderness and re- 
spect. They both expressed their sorrow for what had hap- 
pened, disavowed their participation in it, and joined in pro- 
mising him protection and future favour. But, though they 
instantly degraded Bovadilla, in order to remove from them- 
selves any suspicion of having authorised his violent pro-, 
ceedings, they did not restore Columbus to his jurisdiction^ 
as viceroy of those provinces which he had discovered. They 
were afraid to trust a man to whom they had been so highly 
indebted ; and, under various pretexts, retaining him at court, 
they appointed Don Nicholas de Ovando governor of His- 
paniola. 

Columbus was deeply afffectedby this new injury, inflicted 
by hands which seemed employed in making reparation for 
the past. Wherever he went, he carj:ied with him, as a me-* 



fflSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 65 

morial of Spanish ingratitude, the fetters with which he had 
been loaded : they were constantly suspended in his cham- 
ber, and he gave orders that when he died, they should be 
buried in his grave. 

^ - „ In the mean time, the spirit of research continued 

' active and vigorous. Roderigo de Bastidas, in co- 
partnership with Juan de la Cosa, who had served in two 
voyages under Columbus ; and not long afterwards, Ojeda, 
with his former associate, Americo Vespucio, sailed along all 
the coast of the province now known by the name of Terra 
Firma, from Cape de Vela to the Gulf of Darien. 

Before these adventurers returned from their voyages, a 
fleet was equipped, at the public expense, for conveying 
Gvando, the new governor, to Hispaniola. His presence 
there was extremely requisite, in order to stop the inconside- 
rate career of Bovadilla, whose imprudent administration 
threatened the settlement with ruin. Instead of protecting 
the Indians, Bovadilla gave a legal sanction to their oppres- 
sion, lie took an exact number of those who survived their 
past calamities, divided them into distinct classes, distributed 
them, as property, amongst his adherents, and reduced them 
all to a state of complete servitude. He granted universal 
permission to work the mines, paying only an eleventh, in- 
stead of a third part, to the government. To prevent any 
diminution in the revenue, it became necessary to increase 
the quantity of gold collected. He compelled the caziques, 
therefore, to furnish each Spaniard with Indians, to assist him 
both in the labours of the field and of the mine. The only 
injunction of Bovadilla was, "to produce large quantities of 
ore." He had one saying continually in his mouth : " make 
the most of your time," he would say ; " there is no telling 
how long it may last ;" alluding to the possibility of his being 
speedily recalled. The colonists strictly followed his advice ; 
and so hard did they drive the poor natives, that the eleventh 
yielded more revenue to the crown, than had ever been pro- 
duced by the third under the government of Columbus. 

In the mean time, the unhappy natives suffered every spe- 
cies of cruelty from their inhuman taskmasters. Little used 
to labour, of feeble constitution, and accustomed, in their 
delightful and luxuriant country, to a life of ease and free- 
dom, they sunk under the toils imposed upon them, and the 
ge verities by which they were enforced. 

An indignant picture is given, by one of the historians of 
f2| . ■ 



e^ HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

that period, of the capricious tyranny exercised over the In- 
dians by worthless Spaniards, particularly by those who had 
been taken from the dungeons of Castile. " These wretches," 
to use the language of an admired biographer, " who, in their 
own country, had been the vilest amongst the vile, here assum- 
ed the tone of grand cavaliers. They insisted on being attend- 
ed by trains of servants. They took the daughters of female 
relatives of caziques, for their domestics, or rather for their 
concubines, nor did they limit themselves in number. When 
they travelled, instead of using the horses and mules with 
which they were provided, they obliged the natives to tran- 
sport them on their shoulders, in litters or hamacs, with others 
attending, to hold umbrellas of palm-leaves over their heads, 
to keep off the sun, and fans made of feathers, to cool them; 
and Las Casas affirms that he has seen the backs and shoul- 
ders of the unfortunate Indians who bore the litters, raw and 
bleeding fi'om the task." 

1 ^09 '^^^^ necessity of applying a speedy remedy to these 
disorders, hastened the departure of Ovando. He had 
the command of the most respectable armament hitherto fit- 
ted out for the new world. It consisted of thirty-two ships, 
on board of which there embarked two-thousand-five -hundred 
persons, with an intention of settling in the country. On 
J. .7 1 K the arrival of the new governor, Bovadilla resigned 
P ' his charge, and was commanded to return instantly 

to Spain, to answer for his conduct. Roldan, and the other 
ringleaders of the mutineers, who had been the most active 
in opposing Columbus, were required to leave the island at 
the same time ; while a proclamation was issued, declaring 
the natives to be free subjects of Spain, of whom no service 
was to be exacted, contrary to their own inclination, and 
without paying them an adequate price for their labour. 
But a concurrent decree, published by Ferdinand and Isa- 
bella, furnishes matter for serious reflection. While makings 
regulations! to mitigate the condition of the Indians, with that 
inconsistency which frequently mars the purposes of human 
judgment, they encouraged a gross invasion of the rights of 
another race of our fellow creatures. Amongst their various 
decrees on this occasion, are found the first seeds of negro 
slavery in the western hemisphere. It was permitted to carry 
to the colonies, negro slaves, born amongst christians, by 
which are meant, slaves born in Seville and other parts of 
Spain, the children and descendants of natives brought from 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 67 

the Atlantic coasts of Africa ; with which regions, a traffic 
of the kind had for some time been prosecuted by the Spa- 
niards and Portuguese. — " There are signal events in the 
course of history," observes an elegant and highly esteemed 
American writer,* " which 'sometimes bear the appearance 
of temporal judgments. It is a fact, worthy of observation,, 
that Hispaniola, the place where this flagrant sin against na- 
ture and humanity was first introduced into the new worldy 
has been the first to exhibit an awful retribution." 

Even the modification designed to ameliorate the severe 
condition of the Indians, was used only as a mockery of free- 
dom. It was arranged, that the several caziques were to fur- 
nish the settlers with a certain number of Indians, who were 
to be paid by their employer, and instructed in the catholic 
faith. But the pay was so small,^ as to be little more than 
nominal ; the instruction little more than the mere ceremony 
of baptism ; and the term of labour was at first six, and then 
eight months in every year. Under cover of this hired la- 
bour,, intended both for the ease of their bodies and the sal- 
vation of their souls, more intolerable toil was imposed upon 
them, and more horrible cruelties were inflicted, than in the 
worst days of Bovadilla. They were separated, often the dis- 
tance of several days' journey, from their wives and children ; 
doomed to intolerable labour of all kinds, extorted by the 
cruel infliction of the lash. For food, they had cassava-bread, 
an unsubstantial support for men compelled to labour ; some- 
times, a very small quantity of pork vfas distributed amongst 
a great number ; scarcely a mouthful to each. When the 
Spaniards who superintended the mines, were at their repast, 
says a humane writer,*]" the famished Indians scrambled under 
the table, like dogs, for any bone that might be throw^n to 
them ; and, after they had gnawed and sucked it, they pound- 
ed it between stones, and mixed it with their cassava-bread,, 
that nothing of so precious a morsel might be lost* 

* Irving. i Las Casas. 



68 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

CHAPTER V. 

THE FOURTH AND LAST VOYAGE OF COLUMBUS. 

HE MAKES FURTHER DISCOVERIES ALONG THE CONTINENT OF 

AMERICA, AND NAMES THE HARBOUR OF PORTO BELLO IS 

WRECKED ON THE COAST OF JAMAICA RETURNS TO EUROPE. 

DEATH OF ISABELLA.— DEATH OF COLUMBUS IS SUC- 
CEEDED BY HIS SON DIEGO. 

Meanwhile, Golumbus was engaged in the unpleasant 
employment of soliciting the favour of an ungrateful court ; 
and, notwithstanding all his merit and services, he solicited 
in vain. He demanded, in terms of the original contract of 
1492, to be reinstated in his office of viceroy over the coun- 
tries which he had discovered. But, by a strange fatality, 
the circumstance urged by him in favour of his claim, deter- 
mined a jealous monarch to reject it. The greatness of his 
discoveries, and the prospect of their increasing value, made 
Ferdinand consider the concessions in that agreement as ex- 
travagant and impolitic. He was afraid to intrust a subject 
with the exercise of a jurisdiction, which might become no 
less formidable than it now appeared extensive. He inspired 
Isabella with the same suspicions ; and, under various pre- 
texts, equally frivolous and unjust, they eluded all the requi- 
sitions of Columbus to perform what a solemn compact bound 
them to accomplish. After attending the court of Spain for 
nearly two years, as an humble suitor, he perceived that he 
laboured in vain, when he urged a claim of justice or merit 
with an interested and unfeeling prince. 

The spirit of Columbus, however, was not yet subdued. 
Even that ungenerous return did not discourage him from 
pursuing the great object which had first called forth his in- 
ventive genius. To open a new passage to the East Indies, 
was his original and favourite scheme. This still engrossed 
his thoughts ; and, either from his own observations in his 
voyage to Paria, or from some obscure hints of the natives, 
or from the accounts given by Bastidas and De la Cosa, of 
their expedition, he conceived an opinion, that, beyond the 
continent of America, there was a sea which extended to the 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 69 

East Indies, and hoped to find some strait or narrow neck of 
land, by which a communication might be opened with it and 
that part of the ocean already known. By a fortunate con- 
jecture, he supposed this strait or isthmus to be situated near 
the gulf of Darien. Full of this idea, though now at an ad- 
vanced age, and broken with infirmities, he offered to under- 
take a voyage which would ascertain this important point, 
and perfect the grand scheme, which, from the beginning, 
he proposed to accomplish. 

Several circumstances concurred, in disposing Ferdinand 
and Isabella to lend a favourable ear to this proposal. They 
were glad to have the pretext of any honourable employment, 
for removing from court a person v/ith whose demands they 
deemed it impolitic to comply, and whose services it was in- 
decent to neglect : about this time, too, the Portuguese fleet, 
under Cabral, arrived from the Indies ; by the richness of its 
cargo, giving the people of Europe a more perfect idea than 
they had hitherto been able to form, of the opulence and fer- 
tility of the east : thus, Lisbon became immediately the seat 
of commerce and wealth ; while Spain had only the expecta- 
tion of remote benefit, and future gain, from the western 
world. For the performance of this important object, there 
were assigned to Columbus, four small barks, the largest of 
which did not exceed seventy tons ; the crews amounting, in 
all, to one-hundred-and-fifty men. It appears, however, that 
he preferred vessels of this size, to larger, for a voyage of that 
nature, on account of the greater safety arising from their 
easy draught of water, when exploring an unknown coast. 
He was accompanied by his brother Bartholomew, and his 
second son Ferdinand, the historian of his actions. He sailed 
from Cadiz on the 9th of May, and touched, as usual, at the 
Canary islands ; whence, he proposed to steer directly for 
Jamaica, and thence for the continent, in search of the sup- 
posed straits : but his largest vessel was so clumsy and unfit 
for service, that he was constrained to shape his course for 
Hispaniola, (contrary to the orders of the sovereigns, prohibit- 
ing him, on his outward voyage, to touch at this island,) in 
the hope of exchanging her for some ship of the fleet that 
had carried out Ovando. 

J 24. When he arrived at St. Domingo, he found eigh» 

^^^ * teen of those ships ready laden, and on the point 

of departing for Spain. Columbus immediately acquainted 

the governor with the destination of his voyage ^ and the ae^ 



70 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

cident which had obliged him to alter his route. He re- 
quested permission to enter the harbour, not only that he 
might negotiate the exchange of his ship, but that he might 
take shelter during a violent hurricane, of which, from various 
prognostics, suggested by his experience and sagacity, he 
discerned the approach. On that account, he advised him, 
likewise, to defer, for some days, the sailing of the fleet 
bound for Spain. But Ovando refused his request, and de- 
spised his counsel. " Under circumstances," observes an 
elegant historian,* " in which humanity would have afforded 
refuge to a stranger, Columbus was denied admittance into a 
country, of which he had discovered the existence, and ac- 
quired the possession ; and his salutary warning was con- 
sidered as the dream of a visionary prophet." The fleet 
sailed for Spain. The following night, the hurricane came 
on, with dreadful impetuosity. Aware of the danger, Colum- 
bus used precautions against it, by taking shelter in some 
wild bay or river of the island. Within two days, the predic- 
tions of Columbus were verified. The fleet destined for 
Spain experienced the fate, merited by the rashness and ob- 
stinacy of its commanders. Of eighteen ships, only two or 
three escaped. In this general wreck, perished Bovadilla, 
Roldan, and the greater part 6f those who had been most ac- 
tive in persecuting the Indians, and oppressing Columbus. 
Together with themselves, was swallowed up all the wealth 
which they had acquired by their cruelty and injustice : 
amongst the ships that escaped, one had on board all the 
effects of Columbus, which had been recovered from the 
ruins of his fortune ; and that one was the only vessel which 
was enabled to continue her voyage to Spain. 

Columbus left Hispaniola on the 14th of July, and steered 
towards the continent. After a tedious and dangerous voyage, 
he discovered Guanaia, an island not far distant from the 
coast of Honduras, and then bore away to the east, towards 
the gulf of Darien. In this navigation, he discovered all the 
coast of the continent, from Cape Gracios a Dios, to a har- 
bour, which, on account of its beauty and security, he called 
Porto Bello : but he searched in vain for the imaginary strait, 
through which he expected to make his way into an unknown 
sea; and, though he went several times on shore, and ad^ 
vanced into the country, he did not penetrate so far, as to 

f Robertson, 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. ^l 

cross the narrow isthmus which separates the gulf of Mexico 
from the great southern ocean. A beautiful island, at which 
Columbus stopped to procure refreshments, he called La 
Huerta, or the Garden. Directly opposite, on the main land, 
v/as an Indian village, named Cariari, situated on the bank 
of a delightful river. As soon as the inhabitants beheld the 
shipSi they assembled on the coast, armed with bows and 
arrows, war-clubs and lances, prepared to defend their shores. 
When, however, they perceived that the Spaniards did not 
attempt to molest them, their hostility ceased, their curiosity 
began to predominate, and they made various pacific signals, 
waving their mantles like banners, and inviting the Spani- 
ards to land. Finding that the strangers still declined to 
come on shore, the natives tried every means to dispel the 
distrust which might have been caused by their hostile de- 
monstrations. One day, a boat cautiously approaching the 
shore, in quest of some place at which to procure water, a 
venerable looking Indian issued from amongst the trees, 
bearing a white banner on the end of a staff, as a signal of 
peace ; and leading two girls, one about fourteen years of 
age, the other eight, having ornaments of gold about their 
necks. These he conducted to the boat, and delivered to 
the Spaniards ; making signs that they were to be detained 
as hostages while the strangers should be on shore. The 
Spaniards now sallied forth with confidence, and filled their 
water-casks j the Indians remaining at a distance, and observ- 
ing the strictest care, neither by word nor movement, to cause 
any new distrust. When the boats were about to return to 
the ships, the old Indian made signs that the young girls 
should be taken on board ; nor would he admit any denial. 
Columbus was careful that the confidence thus placed in 
him should not be abused. After feasting the young females, 
and ordering them to be clothed and adorned with various 
ornaments, he sent them on shore. It was at this time, how- 
ever, nearly dark, and the coast was deserted. They were 
under the necessity of returning to the ship, where they re- 
mained all night under the paternal guardianship of Colum- 
bus, who, the next morning, restored them to their friends. 

On the following day, the adelantado endeavoured to col- 
lect information from the natives respecting the country, and 
ordered the notary of the squadron to write down the replies. 
The latter immediately prepared pen, ink, and paper, and 
proceeded to write ; but, no sooner did the Indians behold 



*5'2 tilSTOHY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

this strange and mysterious operation, than, mistaking it for 
some necromantic spell, intended to be wrought upon them, 
they fled, with terror, to the woods. Shortly afterwards, they 
returned, cautiously scattering a fragrant powder in the air, 
and burning some of it in such a direction that the smoke 
would be borne towards the Spaniards, by the wind : this was 
apparently intended to counteract any baleful spell, for they 
regarded their visiters as beings of a mysterious and super- 
natural order. 

When examining one of the villages, the adelantado found, 
in a large house, several sepulchres. One contained a hu- 
man body, embalmed. In another, there were two bodies, 
wrapped in cotton, and so preserved, as to be free from any 
disagreeable smell. They were adorned with the ornaments 
esteemed most precious by the individuals when living ; and 
the sepulchres were decorated with rude carvings and paint- 
ings, representing various animals, and sometimes what ap- 
peared to be portraits of the deceased. 

On the coast of Veragua, for the first time in the new 
World, the Spaniards beheld signs of solid architecture; hav- 
ing found a large mass of stucco, formed of stone and limcj 
a piece of which was carried away by Columbus, as a speci- 
men, considering it an indication of his approach to countries 
where the arts were in a higher degree of cultivation. 

Thus, briefly have we noticed some of the many objects 
of curiosity observed by the Spaniards in this interesting 
search. Like all the preceding voyages of the great disco- 
■.ncio verer, it was not free from vexation and peril. A 
repulse, experienced by a small colony left on the 
river Belem, in the province of Veragua — the first that the 
Spaniards met, from any of the American nations— was not 
the only misfortune that, in this voyage, befel Columbus. It 
was followed by a succession of all the disasters to which 
navigation is exposed. Furious hurricanes, with violent 
storms of thunder and lightning, threatened his leaky vessels 
with destruction ; while his discontented crew, exhausted by 
fatigue, and destitute of provisions, were unwilling or unable 
to execute his commands. One of his ships perished ; he 
was compelled to abandon another, as unfit for service; and, 
with the two which remained, he quitted that part of the 
continent, which, in his anguish, he named the Coast of Vex- 
ation ; and bore away for Hispaniola. New distresses awaited 
him, in this voyage. He was driven back, by a violent tem- 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 73 

pest, from the coast of Cuba, his ships were dashed against 
each other, and were so much shattered by the shock, that, 
with the utmost difficulty, they reached Jamaica ; where he 
r (y* was constrained to run them aground, to prevent 
them trom sinking. 
Fortune seemed now to have assailed Columbus with her 
last and keenest shaft. He was cast ashore upon an island 
at a considerable distance from the only settlement of the 
Spaniards in America. His ships were ruined, beyond the 
possibility of being repaired. To convey an account of his 
situation to Hispaniola, appeared impracticable ; and without 
this, it was in vain to expect relief. In his distress, he had 
recourse to the hospitable kindness of the natives ; from whom, 
he obtained two of their canoes ; in which small and mis- 
shapen boats, fit only for creeping along the coast, or crossing 
from one side of a bay to another, Mendez, a Spaniard, who, 
had several times before risked his life in the service of Co- 
lumbus, and Fiesco, a Genoese, two gentlemen particularly 
attached to the admiral, gallantly offered to set out for His- 
paniola, upon a voyage of forty leagues. Each had one of the 
canoes under his command ; in which, were six Spaniards and 
ten Indians. They reached Cape Tiburon, in Hispaniola, in 
four days ; and Mendez, partly by water, and partly by pene- 
trating an unexplored wilderness, arrived at St. Domingo in 
ten days from their departure, after surmounting incredible 
dangers, and enduring so great a fatigue, that several of the 
Indians who accompanied them, sunk under it, and died. 

The attention paid to them by the governor of Hispaniola 
was neither such as their courage merited, nor the distress 
of their fellow-sufferers required. From a mean jealousy of 
Columbus, Ovando was afraid of allowing him to set foot 
upon the island under his government; and eight months 
were spent by Mendez and Fiesco, in soliciting relief for 
their commander and associates, without any prospect of 
success. 

•tj^n* During this period, various passions agitated the 
mind of Columbus and his companions in adversity. 
After some time, the more timorous began to suspect that ' 
Mendez and Fiesco had miscarried in their daring attempt. 
At length, even the most sanguine concluded that they had 
perished; despair, heightened by disappointment, settled in 
every breast; in a transport of rage, forty-eight of the seamen, 
headed by Francisco de Porras, rose in open mutiny, threaten- 
G 



74 mSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

ed the life of Columbus, whom they reproached as the author 
of all their calamities, seized ten canoes, which the admiral 
had purchased from the Indians, and fled with them to a dis- 
tant part of the island. Following the course taken by Men- 
dez and Fiesco, they made repeated attempts to pass over 
to Hispaniola, but, either from their own misconduct, or the 
violence of the winds and current, their efforts were all un- 
successful. From their light structure, and their bottoms 
being round, the canoes were easily overturned, and required 
to be carefully balanced. They were now deeply laden by 
men unaccustomed to them, and as the sea rose, they fre- 
quently let in the water. Becoming alarmed, the Spaniards 
endeavoured to lighten them, by throwing overboard every 
thing that could be spared ; retaining only their arms, and a 
part of their provisions. The danger augmented with the 
wind. They now compelled the Indians whom they had 
procured to accompany them, to leap into the sea, except 
such as wete absolutely necessary to navigate the canoes. If 
they refused, they drove them overboard with the edge of 
the sword. The Indians were experienced swimmers, but 
the distance to land was too great for their strength. They 
kept about the canoes, therefore, taking hold of them, occa- 
sionally, to rest themselves and recover breath. As their 
weight disturbed the balance of the canoes, and threatened 
to overturn them, the Spaniards cut off their hands, and stab- 
bed them with their swords. Some died by the weapons of 
these cruel men, others sank exhausted beneath the waves : 
thus, eighteen miserably perished, and none survived, except 
those who had been retained to manage the canoes* 

With extreme difficulty, they were enabled to retrace their 
course. Enraged at this disappointment, they returned to- 
wards that part of the island where Columbus remained, 
threatening him with new insults and dangers. All his en- 
deavours to reclaim them had no other effect than to increase 
their frenzy. The common safety made it necessary to oppose 
them with open force. Columbus, w^ho had been long afflicted 
■with gout, could not take the field. His brother, the adelan- 
tado, marched against them. In the first encounter, several 
of their most daring leaders were slain. The adelantado, 
whose strength was equal to his courage, closed with their 
captain, wounded, disarmed, and took him prisoner. The 
^rest fled; and soon afterwards, they submitted, in a body, to 
Columbus, binding themselves, by the most solemn oaths, to 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 75 

obey all his commands. Hardly was tranquillity re-established, 
when two vessels arrived from Hispaniola. Never was re- 
lief more unexpected, or more grateful. With transports of 
joy, the Spaniards quitted an island in which the unfeeling 
jealousy of Ovando had suffered them to languish above a 
year, exposed to misery in all its forms. 

On the 13th of August, Columbus anchored in the harbour 
of St. Domingo ; and on the 12th of September, he sailed 
with two ships, for Spain. The present voyage was not less 
unfortunate than the preceding. Disasters, similar to those 
which had accompanied him through life, continued to pursue 
him to the end of his career. One of his vessels, being dis- 
abled, was soon forced back to St. Domingo ; the other, shat- 
tered by violent storms, sailed seven-hundred leagues with 
jury-masts, and reached, with difficulty, the port of St. 
Lucas. 

There, he received intelligence of an event, the most fatal 
that could have befallen him, arid which completed his mis- 
fortunes. This was the death of his patroness, queen Isabella ; 
in whose justice, humanity, and favour, he had confided as 
his last resource. As soon as his health was, in some de- 
gree, re-established, he repaired to court, then held at Sego- 
via ; and, though he was received there with civility barely 
decent, he urged Ferdinand with one petition after anotherj 
demanding the punishment of his oppressors, and the resti- 
tution of all the privileges granted to him by the contract of 
1492. Ferdinand amused Jaim with fair words, and unmean- 
ing promises. Instead of acceding to his claims, he proposed 
expedients in order to elude them, and spun out the affair- 
with artifice so apparent, as plainly discovered his intention 
that it should never be terminated. The declining health 
of Columbus flattered Ferdinand with the hope of soon being 
relieved from an importunate suitor, and encouraged him to 
persevere in this illiberal plan. Nor was he deceived in his 
expectations. With a composure of mind, suitable to the 
magnanimity which distinguished his character, and with 
sentiments of piety becoming that supreme respect for reli- 
gion, which he manifested in every occurrence of life, Co- 
lumbus ended his days, at Valladolid, on the 20th of May, 
1506, in the 71st year of his age.* 

* His body was deposited in the convent of St. Francisco, at Valla- 
doUd. His remains were conveyed afterwards, in 1513, by the king's 



76 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

In his will, Columbus enjoined his son Diego, and whom- 
soever afterwards should inherit his estates, without regard- 
ing any dignities and titles that might be granted by the 
king, always to sign himself simply, " The Admiral ;" by 
way of perpetuating in his family his real source of greatness. 



-»He@94«-. 



CHAPTER, VI. 

EXECUTION OF ANACOANA, BY OVANDO. DISCOVERY OF YUCA- 
TAN. CUBA ASCERTAINED TO BE AN ISLAND. DON DIEGO 

COLUMBUS ARRIVES AT HISPANIOLA. FLORIDA DISCOVERED, 

BY PONCE DE LEON. THE PACIFIC OCEAN DISCOVERED BY 

BALBOA, ACCOMPANIED BY PIZARRO. BALBOA IS SUPERSEDED 

IN THE GOVERNMENT OF DARIEN, BY PEDRARIAS, AND PUT 
TO DEATH. 

- _^f. Whtls Columbus was employed in his last voyage, 
several events worthy of notice occurred in Hispaniola. 
The province anciently named Xaragua, which extends from 
the fertile plain where Leogane is now situated, to the west- 
ern extremity of the island, was subject to a beautiful young 
female cazique, (the widow of Caonabo,) named Anacoana, 
highly respected by the natives. From that partial fondness 
with which the women of America were attached to the Eu- 
ropeans, she had always courted the friendship of the Spani- 
ards, and loaded them with benefits. But, some of the 

command, to the chapel of St. Ann, in tlie Carthusian monastery at Se- 
ville ; in wliich cha^pel, were likewise deposited the remains of his son 
Diego, who died in the village of Montalban, in Spain, in 1526. Ten 
years afterwards, in 1536, the bodies of Columbus and his son Diego 
were removed to Hispaniola, and interred in the cathedral of the city 
of St. Domingo. But even here, they were not suffered to mingle with 
their kindred earth ;. having since been again disinterred, and conveyed 
to Havanna, in the island of Cuba. This occurred at the termination 
of a war between France and Spain, in 1795; when all the Spanish 
possessions in the island of Hispaniola, were ceded to the republic of 
France. The remains were disinterred on the 20th of December, in 
that year ; the next day they were put on board a brigantine, called the 
Discoverer; and, on the 15th of January, 1796, they arrived at Havan- 
na, and were there deposited in the wall, on the right side of the grand 
altar in the cathedral. 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 77 

adherents of Roldan having settled in her country, were so 
much exasperated at her endeavouring to restrain their ex- 
cesses, that they accused her of having formed a plan to 
throv/ off the yoke, and to exterminate the Spaniards. Ovan- 
do, though he well knew how little credit was due to so profli- 
gate men, marched, without further inquiry, towards Xaragua, 
with three-hundred foot-soldiers, armed with swords, ar que - 
busses, and cross-bows, and seventy horsemen, with cuirasses, 
bucklers, and lances. Lest the Indians might be alarmed at 
this hostile appearance, he reported that his sole intention 
was, in the most respectful manner, to visit Anacoana, to 
whom his countrymen had been much indebted, and to regu- 
late, with her, the mode of levying the tribute payable to the 
kino- of Spain. In order to receive this illustrious guest with 
due'hoiiour, Anacoana assembled the principal men m her 
dominions, to the number of three-hundred; and, advancing 
at the head of these, accompanied by a great crowd of per- 
sons of inferior rank, she welcomed Ovando with songs and 
dances, according to the mode of the country, and conducted 
him to the place of her abode. There, he was feasted for 
some days, with all the kindness of simple hospitality, and 
amused with the games and spectacles usual amongst the In- 
dians on occasions of festivity and mirth. But, amidst the 
security inspired by this entertainment, Ovando was meditat- 
ing the destruction of his unsuspicious hostess and her suo- 
iects ; and the mean perfidy with which he executed this 
scheme, equalled his barbarity in forming it. Under colour 
of exhibiting to the Indians the parade of a European tourna- 
m.ent, he advanced with his troops in battle array, towards 
the house in which Anacoana and forty of her chieftains 
were assembled. The infantry took possession of all the 
avenues leading to the village, while the horsemen encom- 
passed the house. These movements were objects of admi- 
ration, without any mixture of fear, until, on a previously 
concerted signal, the sounding of a trumpet, the fepaniarcls 
suddenly drew their swords, and rushed upon the Indians, 
defenceless, and astonished at an act of treachery which ex- 
ceeded the conception of undesigning men. In a moment, 
Anacoana was secured. All her attendants were seized and 
bound. Fire was set to the house ; and, without examma- 
tion or conviction, all these unhappy persons, the most illus- 
trious in their own country, were consumed in the tlanoes. 
Anacoana was reserved for a more ignominious fate, bhe 
g2 



78 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

was carried in chains to St. Domingo ; and, after the formality 
of a trial before Spanish judges, she was condemned, on the 
evidence of the very men who had betrayed her, and 
hanged in the presence of the people whom she had so sig- 
nally befriended. 

After the massacre of Xaragua, the destruction of its in- 
habitants still continued. The favourite nephew of Anaco- 
ana, the cazique Guaora, who had fled to the mountains, was 
hunted like a wild beast, until he was taken, and likewise 
hanged. For six months, the Spaniards continued to ravage 
the country wdth horse and foot, under the pretext of quell- 
ing insurrections. Having at length driven the wretched 
Indians from their last places of concealment, destroyed 
many, and reduced the survivors to the most deplorable mise- 
ry and abject submission, the whole of that part of the island 
was considered as restored to good order; and, in commemo- 
ration of this great triumph, Ovando founded a town near the 
lake, which he called Santa Maria de la verdadera Paz — St. 
Mary of the true Peace. 

The conquest of Plispaniolamay at this period be pronounced 
complete. Overawed and humbled by the atrocious treat- 
ment of the inhabitants of Xaragua, the people of all the pro- 
vinces of that extensive island submitted, without further 
resistance, to the Spanish yoke. 

^ -^^ The political conduct of Ovando was actuated by 
that combination of heterogeneous principles, which 
influenced nearly every person in that age of sophistry and 
imperfect moral education. He governed the Spaniards with 
wisdom and justice, not inferior to the rigour with which he 
treated the Indians. He founded several new towns in difte- 
rent parts of the island, and allured inhabitants to them, by 
the concession of various iinmunities. He endeavoured to 
turn the attention of the Spaniards to some branch of indus- 
try, more useful than searching for gold in the mines* Some 
slips of sugar-cane having been brought from the Canary 
islands by way of experiment, they were found to thrive with 
such increase in the rich soil and warm climate to which 
they were transplanted, that their cultivation soon became 
an object of commerce. Extensive plantations were com- 
menced ; sugar-works were erected, and, in a few years, the 
manufacture of this commodity was the chief occupation of 
the inhabitants of Hispaniola, and the most considerable 
source of their wealth. 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 79 

^ -l^^ The prudent endeavours of Ovando to promote the 
welfare of the colony, were powerfully seconded by 
Ferdinand. He erected, at Seville, a court, disting-uished by 
the title of Casa de Contractacion, or Board of Trade ; com- 
posed of persons eminent for rank and abilities, to whom he 
committed the administration of American affairs ; and he 
gave a regular form to ecclesiastical government in America, 
by nominating archbishops, bishops, and deans, together with 
clergymen of subordinate ranks. 
P-j^j^ But, notwithstanding this attention to the policy and 
welfare of the colony, a calamity impended, which 
threatened its dissolution. The original inhabitants, on whose 
labour the Spaniards in Hispaniola relied for their prosperity, 
and even their existence, wasted so rapidly, as to indicate 
unavoidable destruction to the whole race. When Colum- 
bus discovered Hispaniola, the number of its inhabitants was 
computed to be at least a million. They were now, in the 
space of sixteen years, reduced to sixty thousand. Thus de- 
prived of their accustomed instruments of labour, the Spa- 
niards found it impossible to extend their improvements, or 
even to carry on the works which they had already begun. 
In order to provide an immediate remedy for an evil so alarm- 
ing, Ovando proposed to transport the inhabitants of the Lu- 
cayo islands to Hispaniola, under pretence that they might, 
with more facility, be civilized, and, with greater advantage, 
instructed in the christian religion, if united to the Spanish 
colony, and placed under the immediate inspection of the 
missionaries. Ferdinand consented to this hypocritical 
scheme. Several vessels were despatched to the Lucayos, 
the commanders of which informed the natives, that they 
came from a delicious country, in which resided the departed 
ancestors of the Indians, by whom, they were sent to invite 
their descendants to resort thither, to partake of the bliss en- 
joyed by happy spirits. That simple people easily fell into 
this diabolical snare. Above forty thousand were decoyed 
into Hispaniola, to share in the miseries inflicted upon the 
inhabitants of that island, and to mingle their groans and 
tears with the sorrows of that wretched race of men. 

In the following year, Juan Ponce de Leon, who com- 
manded under Ovando, in the eastern district of Hispaniola, 
was permitted to pass over into Porto Rico, which Columbus 
had discovered in his second voyage, and attempt making a 
settlement in the island. This was easily effected, by an of- 



go HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

iicer, eminent for conduct, no less than for courage. In a 
few years, Porto Rico was subjected to the Spanish govern- 
ment ; the natives were reduced to servitude ; and, being 
treated with the same degree of inconsiderate rigour as their 
neighbours in Hispaniola, the aboriginal inhabitants were 
soon exterminated. About the same time, Juan Diaz de So- 
lis, in conjunction with Vincent Yanez Pinzon, one of the 
original companions of Columbus, made a voyage to the con- 
tinent, and discovered a new and extensive province, after- 
wards known by the name of Yucatan ; and, by the orders of 
Ovando, Sebastian de Ocampo sailed around Cuba, and first 
ascertained that this country, which Columbus had always 
supposed to be a part of the continent, was a large island. 

This voyage around Cuba was one of the last occurrences 
under the administration of Ovando. Ever since the death 
of Columbus, his son, Don Diego, had been employed in so- 
liciting Ferdinand to grant him the offices of viceroy and ad- 
miral in the new world, together with all the other immuni- 
ties and profits which had descended to him by inheritance,, 
in consequence of the original contract with his father. At 
length, he endeavoured to obtain, by a legal sentence, what 
he could not procure from the favour of an interested 
monarch. With the royal permission, he commenced a suit 
against king Ferdinand, before the council which managed 
Indian affairs ; and that court, with an integrity which reflects 
honour upon its proceedings, decided unanimously against 
the king, and sustained Diego's claim to the vice-royalty, to- 
gether with all the other privileges stipulated in the agree- 
ment. Even after this decree, Ferdinand's repugnance to 
put a subject in possession of so extensive rights, might have 
raised new obstacles, if Don Diego had not formed an alliance 
which interested very powerful individuals in the success of 
his claims. The sentence of the council of the Indies en~ 
titled him to a rank so elevated, and a fortune so opulent, 
that he found no difficulty in concluding a marriage with 
Donna Maria, daughter of Don Ferdinand de Toledo, grand 
commander of Leon, and niece of the celebrated duke of 
Alva ; a nobleman of the first rank, and nearly related to the 
king. The duke and his family espoused so warmly the cause 
of their new ally, that Ferdinand could not resist their soli- 
citations. He recalled Ovando, and appointed Don Diego his 
successor; though, even in conferring this favour, he could 
not; conceal his jealousy ; for he allowed him to assume only 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 81 

the title of governor, not that of viceroy, which, it had been 
adjudged, he had a right to use. 

, ..^Q Don Diego quickly repaired to Hispaniola, accom- 
panied by his brother, Don Fernando ; his two uncles, 
Don Bartholomew and Don Diego ; his wife, whom the cour- 
tesy of the Spaniards honoured Avith the title of vice-queen ; 
and a numerous retinue of cavaliers, with their wives, and 
of young ladies of rank and family, more distinguished, it is 
hinted, by a cotemporary historian, for high blood than large 
fortunes, who were sent out to find wealthy husbands in the 
new world. He lived with a splendour and magnificence 
hitherto unknown in the new world ; and the family of Co- 
lumbus seemed now to enjoy the honours and rewards due to 
his inventive genius, of which he himself had been cruelly 
defrauded. 

But no benefit accrued to the unhappy natives, from this 
change of governors. Don Diego was not only authorized, 
by a royal edict, to continue the repartimientos, or distribu- 
tion of Indians, but the particular number which he might 
grant to every person according to his rank in the colony, 
was specified. He availed himself of that permission, and, 
soon after he arrived at St. Domingo, he divided those Indians 
who were still unappropriated, amongst his relations and at- 
tendants. 

The next care of the new governor, was to comply with 
instructions which he received from the king, respecting the 
settling of a colony in Cubagua, a small island discovered by 
Columbus in his third voyage. Though this barren spot 
hardly yielded subsistence to its wretched inhabitants, so 
great quantities were found on its coast, of those oysters 
which produce pearls, that it did not long escape the inqui- 
sitive avarice of the Spaniards, and became a place of con- 
siderable resort. Large fortunes were acquired by the fishery 
of pearls, which was pursued with extraordinary ardour. The 
Indians, especially those from the Lucayo islands, were com- 
pelled to dive for them ; a dangerous and unhealthy employ- 
ment, which was an additional calamity, and contributed not 
a little to the extinction of that devoted race. 

Though ten years had elapsed, since Columbus discovered 
the main land of America, the Spaniards had hitherto esta- 
blished no settlement in any part of it. What had been so 
long neglected, was now attempted, and with considerable 
vigour. This scheme was projected by Alonzo de Ojeda, 



82 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

who had already made two voyages of discovery, by which 
he acquired considerable reputation, but not wealth. His 
character, notwithstanding, for intrepidity and conduct, easily 
procured him associates, who advanced the money requisite 
to defray the charges of the expedition. About the same 
time, Diego de Nicuessa, who had acquired a large fortune 
in Hispaniola, formed a similar design. Ferdinand encou- 
raged both ; and, though he refused to advance the smallest 
sum of money, was extremely liberal of titles and patents. 
He erected two governments on the continent ; one extend- 
ing from Cape de Vela to th^ gulf of Darien ; the other, from 
that point to Cape Gracios a' Dios. The fomier was given to 
Ojeda, the latter to Nicuessa. Ojeda fitted out a ship and 
two brigantines, with three-hundred men ; Nicuessa, six ves- 
sels, with seven-hundred-and-eighty men. They sailed about 
the same time from St. Domingo, for their respective govern- 
ments. They found the natives in those regions, of a cha- 
racter very difl'erent from that of their countrymen in the 
islands. They were fierce and warlike. Their arrows were 
dipped in a poison so noxious, that every wound was followed 
by certain death. In one encounter, they slew above seventy 
of Ojeda's followers, and the Spaniards, for the first time, 
were taught to dread the inhabitants of the new world, and 
were justly punished for their violent, cruel, and absurd dic- 
tation of their peculiar religious mysteries, to a people wholly 
incapable of comprehending what, even by themselves, are 
declared to be beyond the reach of human reason, in its most 
highly cultivated state. Nicuessa was opposed by a people 
equally resolute in defence of their possessions* Nothing 
could soften their ferocity. Every disaster which can be ac- 
cumulated on the unfortunate, combined to complete the ruin 
of his party. They were involved in a succession of cala- 
mities, the bare recital of which, strikes one v/ith horror. 
Though they received two considerable reinforcements from 
Hispaniola, the greater part of those who had engaged in 
this unhappy expedition perished, in less than a year, in ex- 
treme misery. A few who survived, settled, as a feeble co- 
lony, at Santa Maria el Antigua, on the gulf of Darien, under 
the command of Yasco Nugnez de Balboa ; who, in the most 
desperate exigencies, displayed such courage and conduct, as 
first gained the confidence of his countrymen, and marked 
him out as their leader, in more splendid and successful un- 
dertakings. Nor was Balboa the only adyenturei* in this ex;- 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. gg 

pedition, who will appear with lustre in more important 
scenes. Francisco Pizarro was one of Ojeda's companions ; 
and Hernan Cortes, whose name became still more famous, 
had likewise engaged early in this enterprise, but by the in- 
terposition of that good fortune, which accompanied him in 
his subsequent adventures, he was taken sick at St. Domingo, 
before the departure of the fleet, and detained there by a se- 
rious illness. 
^r.-.fx Yet, notwithstanding the unfortunate issue of this 

expedition, the Spaniards were not deterred from en* 
gaging in new schemes of a similar nature. When Don 
Diego Columbus proposed to conquer the island of Cuba, and 
to establish a colony there, many persons of high distinction 
in Hispaniola engaged with alacrity in the measure. He gave 
, f.^ ^ the command of the troops destined for that service 

to Diego Velasquez, one of his father's companions 
in his second voyage. Three -hundred men Were deemed suf* 
ficient for the conquest of an island, filled with inhabitants, and 
more than seven-hundred miles in length. The only obstruc- 
tion offered to the Spaniards, was by Hatuey, a cazique who 
had fled from Hispaniola, and taken possession of the eastern 
extremity of Cuba. He stood on the defensive, at their first 
landing, and endeavoured to drive them back to their ships. 
His feeble troops, however, were soon routed and dispersed, 
and he himself being taken prisoner, Velasquez, according 
to the barbarous maxims of the Spaniards, considered him as 
a slave who had taken arms against his master, and con- 
demned him to the flames. When Hatuey was fastened to 
the stake, a Franciscan friar labouring to convert him, pro- 
mised him immediate admittance into the joys of heaven, if 
he would embrace the christian faith. — " Are there any Spa- 
niards," says he, after some pause, " in that region of bliss 
which you describe V — " Yes," replied the monk, " but only 
such as are worthy and good." — -" The best of them," re- 
turned the indignant cazique, " have neither v^^orth nor good- 
ness : I will not go to a place where I may meet one of that 
accursed race." 

This dreadful example of vengeance struck the people of 
Cuba with such terror, that they scarcely made any opposi- 
tion to the progress of their invaders; and Velasquez annexed 
this extensive and fertile island to the Spanish monarchy, 
without the loss of a man» 



g4 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

- -^ 2 "^he facility with which that important conquest 
was made, served as an incitement to other under- 
takings. Juan Ponce de Leon, having acquired both fame 
and riches by the reduction of Porto Rico, was impatient to 
engage in some new enterprise. He fitted out three ships, 
at his own expence ; and, directing his course towards the 
Lucayo islands, after touching at several of them, as well as 
of the Bahama islands, he steered to the south-west, and dis- 
covered a country, hitherto unknown to the Spaniards, which 
he called Florida, on account of its gay and beautiful ap- 
pearance. 

Ponce de Leon was not induced to undertake this voyage, 
merely by the passion of searching for new countries : he 
was influenced by one of those visionary ideas, which, at that 
time, often mingled with the spirit of discovery, and rendered 
it active. A tradition prevailed amongst the natives of Porto 
Rico, that, in the isle of Bimini, one of the Lucayos, there 
was a fountain, of so wonderful virtue, as to renew the youth, 
and recall the vigour of every person who bathed in its salu- 
tary waters. In the hope of finding this grand restorative. 
Ponce de Leon and his followers ranged through the islands, 
searching, with fruitless solicitude and labour, for the foun- 
tain, which was the chief object of their expedition. 

Soon after the voyage to Florida, a discovery, of much 
greater importance, was made, in another part of America. 
Balboa, having been appointed governor of the small colony 
at Santa Maria, in Darien, by the voluntary sufirage of his 
associates, was so desirous to obtain from the crown a con- 
firmation of their election, that he despatched one of his of- 
ficers to Spain, in order to solicit a royal commission, which 
might invest him with a legal title to the supreme command. 
In order to merit the dignity to which he aspired, by perform- 
ing some signal service, he made frequent inroads into the 
adjacent country, and collected a considerable quantity of 
gold, which abounded more in that part of the continent, 
than in the islands. In one of these excursions, the Spa- 
niards contended with such eagerness amongst themselves, 
about the division of some gold, that they were on the point 
of proceeding to acts of violence. A young cazique who 
was present, astonished at the high value which they attached 
to a thing of which he did not discern the use, tumbled the 
gold out of the balance, with indignation ; and, turning to 



mg'fORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 85 

tlie Spaniards, " Why do you quarrel," says h-B, " about such 
a trifle ? I will conduct you to a region, where the metaj 
which seems the chief object of your admiration and desire, 
is so common, that the meanest utensils are formed of it." — 
Transported with what they heard, Balboa and his companions 
enquired eagerly where this happy country lay, and how they 
might arrive at it. The cazique informed them, that, at the 
distance of six suns — that is, of six days' journeys — towards 
the south, they would behold another ocean, n'ear which this 
wealthy kingdom was situated ; but, if they intended to attack 
that powerful state, they must assemble forces far superior 
in number and strength to those with which they now ap- 
peared. 

This was the first intimation received by the Spaniards, 
concerning the great southern ocean, or the opulent and ex- 
tensive country known afterwards by the name of Peru. BaU 
boa immediately concluded that the ocean which the cazique 
mentioned, was that for which Columbus had searched with- 
out success, in this part of America, in the hope of opening 
a more direct communication with the East Indies ; and he 
conjectured that the rich territory which had been described 
to him must be a part of that vast and opulent region of the 
earth. 

* f., o The isthmus of Darien is not above sixty miles in 
breadth ; but this neck of land is strengthened, through 
its whole extent, with a chain of lofty mountains, covered with 
forests almost impassable by the foot of man. The valleys, also, 
in that moist climate, where it rains during two thirds of the 
year, are marshy-, and so frequently overflowed, that the in- 
habitants find it necessary, in many places, to build their 
houses upon trees; and large rivers rush down, with impetu- 
ous current, from the high grounds. To march across this 
unexplored country, with no other guides than Indians, whose 
fidelity could be little trusted, was, on all those accounts, the 
boldest enterprise on which the Spaniards had hitherto ven- 
tured in the new world. But the intrepidity of Balboa was 
such as distinguished him amongst his countrymen, at a pe- 
riod when every adventurer was conspicuous for daring cou- 
rage. For this expedition, he was able to muster only one- 
hundred-and-ninety men. But they were hardy veterans, 
inured to the climate of America, and ready to follow him 
through every danger. A thousand Indians attended them, 
to carry their provisions; and, to complete their warlike ar- 
H 



Se HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

ray, they took with them several of those fierce dogs, which 
were no less formidable than destructive to their naked ene- 
mies. 

Balboa set out upon this important expedition on the first 
of September, about the time when the periodical rains be- 
gin to abate. He proceeded by sea, and without any diffi- 
culty, to the territories of a cazique whose friendship he had 
gained ; but no sooner did he begin to advance into the inte- 
rior of the country, than he was retarded by every obstacle 
that he had apprehended, from the nature of the territory, or 
the disposition of the inhabitants. When the Spaniards had 
penetrated a considerable way into the mountains, a powerful 
cazique appeared in a narrow pass, with a numerous body of 
his subjects, to obstruct their progress. But, having dispersed 
the Indians, with great slaughter, the Spaniards continued 
their march. Though their guides had represented the 
breadth of the isthmus to be a journey of only six days, they 
had already spent twenty-five in forcing their way through 
the woods and mountains. At length, the Indians assured 
them, that from the top of the next mountain, they would 
discover the ocean which was the object of their wishes. 
When with infinite toil, they had climbed up the greater 
part of that steep ascent, Balboa commanded his men to halt, 
and advanced alone to the summit, that he might be the first 
to enjoy a spectacle which he had so long desired. " As 
soon as he beheld the South Sea," observes an elegant his- 
torian, " stretching, in endless prospect below him, he fell 
Upon his knees, and, lifting up his hands to Heaven, returned 
thanks to God, who had conducted him to a discovery so 
beneficial to his country, and so honourable to himself. His 
followers observing his transports of joy, rushed forward, to 
join in his wonder, exultation, and gratitude. They held on 
their course with alacrity, to the shore ; when Balboa, advanc- 
ing up to the middle in the waves, with his buckler and 
sword, took possession of that ocean, in the name of the king 
his master." 

That part of the great Pacific or Southern ocean, first dis- 
covered by Balboa, still retains the name of the Gulf of St. 
Michael, which he gave to it, and is situated to the east of 
Panama. The people on the coast informed him that there 
was a mighty and opulent kingdom at a considerable distance 
towards the south-east, the inhabitants of which had tame 
linimals to carry their burthens. In order to give the Spani- 



I 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AJMERICA. 87 

ards an idea of these, they drew on the sand the figure of 
lamas or sheep, afterwards found in Peru, which the Peru- 
vians had taught to perform such services as they described. 
As the lama, in its form, nearly resembles the camel, a beast 
of burthen deemed peculiar to Asia, this circumstance, in 
conjunction with the discovery of the pearls, another noted 
production of that country, tended to confirm the Spaniards 
in their mistaken theory with respect to the vicinity of the 
new world to the East Indies. 

Impatient, however, as was Balboa to visit this unknown 
country, his prudence restrained him from attempting to in- 
vade it with a small party of men, exhausted by fatigue, and 
weakened by disease. He determined to lead back his men 
to their settlement of Santa Maria, at Darien, and to return 
next season with a force more adequate to so ardiious an en^ 
terprise. None of Balboa's officers more distinguished them- 
selves in this service, than Francisco Pizarro, or assisted 
with greater courage and ardour in opening a communication 
with those countries, in Vv^hich he was destined soon to act a 
most conspicuous and memorable part. 

^ - -. . After his return to Santa Maria, Balboa immedi- 
ately sent information to Spain, of the important dis- 
covery which he had made, and solicited a reinforcement of 
a thousand men. The first account of the discovery of the 
new world, hardly occasioned greater joy, than the unexpect- 
ed tidings that a passage was at last found to the great southern 
ocean : yet, notwithstanding Balboa's recent sgrvices, by 
which Ferdinand now hoped to participate with Portugal in 
the wealth which flowed from her settlements and conquests 
in the east, Ferdinand was so ungenerous as to appoint Pe- 
drarias Davila governor of Darien. 

Pedrarias was intrusted with the command of fifteen stout 
vessels, and twelve -thousand soldiers ; and so enthusiastic 
was the ardour of the Spanish gentlemen, to follow a leader 
who was about to conduct them to a country, where, ^s fame 
reported, they had only to throw their nets into the sea, and 
draw out gold, that fifteen hundred embarked on board the 
fleet. 

jgj^g Although, at the time when Pedrarias reached the 
gulf of Darien, Balboa could muster four-hundreds 
and-fifty men, yet he submitted with implicit obedience to 
the will of his sovereign, Pedrarias soon felt the embarrass- 
ments incident to the office which he had eagerly desired. 



gg HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

The village of Santa Maria was seated ih a rich plain, enyi- 
roned with marshes and woods. The constitution of Euro- 
peans was unable to withstand the pestilential influence of 
such a situation, in a climate naturally so noxious, and at a 
season so peculiarly unhealthy. A violent malady destroyed 
many of the soldiers who accompanied Pedrarias ; and an 
extreme scarcity of provisions augmented the distress. Within 
a month, above six-hundred persons perished, in the utmost 
misery. Dejection and despair spread throughout the colony. 
Many persons solicited their dismission, and were glad to 
relinquish all their liopes of wealth, in order to escape from 
that pernicious region. Ferdinand became sensible, at length, 
of his iraprudenc€, in superseding the most active and expe- 
rienced officer that he had in the nev/ world ; and, by way of 
compensation to Balboa, appointed him adelantado, or lieu- 
tenant-governor of the countries on the South Sea. At the 
same time, he enjoined Pedrarias to support Balboa in all his 
operations:, and to consult with him concerning every mea- 
sure that he himself pursued. 

They were at length brought to a reconciliation ; and, to 
cement the union more firmly, Pedrarias agreed to give his 
p. ^ daughter in marriage to Balboa. The first effect of their 
concord was, that Balboa was permitted to make several 
short incursions into the country. These, he conducted with 
such prudence, as added to the reputation which he had already 
acquired : many adventurers resorted to him, and, with ilte 
countenance and aid of Pedrarias, he began to prepare for 
his expedition to the South Sea: but, when ready to sail 
towards Peru, Pedrarias, dreading the prosperity and eleva- 
tion of a man whom he had so deeply injured, under pretexts 
which were false, but plausible, desired Balboa to postpone 
his voyage for a short time, and, to repair to Ada, that he 
might have an interview with him : there, he was immedi- 
ately arrested, accused of disloyalty to the king, and an in- 
tention to revolt against the governor, sentenced to die, and 
executed. 

On the death of Balboa, the expedition planned by him 
was relinquished. By his patronage at court, Pedrarias was 
not only screened from punishment, but continued in power. 
Soon afterwards, he obtained permission to remove the colo- 
ny from its unwholesome station of Santa Maria, to Panama, 
on the opposite side of the isthmus ; and though by the change, 
ii did not gain much in point of health, the commodious 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 89 

situation of this new settlement contributed greatly to facili- 
tate the subsequent conquests of the Spaniards in the exten- 
sive countries situated on the southern ocean. 






CHAPTER VII. 

THE illO DE JANEIRO, AND RIO DE PLATA, DISCOVERED BY DE 
S0LI3 HE IS SLAIN BY THE NATIVES. LAS CASAS ADVO- 
CATES THE FREED03I OF THE INDIANS, AND THE SLAVERY 
OF THE NEGROES. 

During these transactions in Darien, several important 
events occurred, with respect to the discovery, the conquest, 
and government of other provinces in the new world. On 
the first day of January, 1516, Juan Diaz de Solis, despatch- 
ed by the king of Spain, for the purpose of opening a com- 
munication with the Molucca or Spice islands by the west, 
entered a river, in South America, which he called Janeiro • 
and, proceeding along the coast, he discovered a spacious 
bay, which he found to be the mouth of a vast river named 
by him Rio de Plata; there, when endeavouring to land, De 
Solis and several of his crew were slain by the natives. Dis- 
couraged by tlie loss of their commander, the surviving 
Spaniards,, without aiming at any further discovery, returned 
to Europe. 

Notwithstanding that this attempt proved abortive, it was 
not without future benefit. It turned the attention of in- 
genious men to this course of navigation, and prepared the 
way for a more fortunate voyage, by which, a few years after- 
wards, the great design which Ferdinand had in view was 
accomplished. 

Though the Spaniards were thus actively employed in ex- 
tending their discoveries and settlements in America, they 
still considered Hispaniola as their principal colony, and the 
seat of their colonial government. The number of Indians 
in the island, was now reduced to fourteen-thousand. The 
violent operations of Rodrigo Albuquerque, the new distri- 
butor of that unhappy race, revived the zeal of the Domini- 
cans against the repartimientos, and called forth an advocate 



go HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA, 

for that oppressed people, who possessed all the courage, che 
talents, and activity, requisite in supporting so desperate a 
cause. This was Bartholomew de las Casas, a native of Se- 
ville, and one of the clergymen sent out with Columbus on 
his second voyage to Hispaniola. He was then only nine- 
teen years of age. He had early adopted the opinion preva- 
lent amongst ecclesiastics, with respect to the unlawfulness 
of reducing the natives to servitude, and, that he might de- 
monstrate the sincerity of his conviction, he relinquished all 
the Indians who had fallen to his own share in the division of 
the inhabitants amongst their conquerors ; declaring that he 
should ever bewail his own misfortune and guilt, in having 
exercised, for a moment, this impious dominion over his fel- 
low-creatures. The impossibility, however, of effecting any 
improvements in America, unless the Spanish planters could 
command the labour of the natives, seemed an insuperable 
objection to his plan of treating them as free subjects. In 
order to provide same remedy for this, without which he found 
it in vain to mention his scheme. Las Casas proposed to pur- 
chase a sufficient number of negroes from the Portuguese 
settlements on the coast of Africa, and to transport them to 
America, in order that they might be employed as slaves in 
working the r/iines and cultivating the ground. One of the 
first mercantile advantages which the Portuguese had derived 
from their discoveries in Africa, arose from the trade in slaves. 
Various circumstances concurred in reviving this odious com- 
merce, which had long been abolished in Europe, and which, 
to express the sentiments of a highly esteemed historian, " is 
no less repugnant to the feelings of humanity, than to the 
principles of religion." — As early as the year 1503, a few 
negro slaves had been sent into the new world. In 1511, 
Ferdinand permitted their importation in greater numbers. 
They were found to be a more robust and hardy race than 
the natives of America; and the labour of one negro was 
computed to be equal to that of four Indians. Cardinal Xi- 
menes, however, the prime minister of Spain, when solicited 
to encourage this commerce, peremptorily rejected the pro- 
position ,* because be perceived the iniquity of reducing one 
race of men to slavery, while consulting abaut the means of 
restoring liberty to another. But Las Casas, from the incon- 
sistency natural to men who hurry with headlong impetuosity 
towards a favourite point, was incapable of making this dis- 
tinction. In the warmth of his zeal to save the Americana 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 91 

from the yoke, he pronounced it to be lawful and expedient 
to impose one still heavier upon the Africans. Unfortunately 
for the latter, the plan of Las Casas was adopted. Charles V. 
the grandson and successor of Ferdinand, granted a patent 
to one of his Flemish favourites, containing an exclusive 
right of importing, into America, four-thousand negroes : the 
favourite sold his patent to some Genoese merchants for 
twenty-five-thousand ducats; and they were the first who 
brought into a regular form that commerce for slaves, which^ 
from that period, until it was first discontinued by Great 
Britain,* was carried on to so amazing an extent^ by nearly 
every christian nation in the world. 

But the Genoese merchants demanded so high a price for 
their negroes, that the number imported into Hispaniola, 
made no perceptible change in the state of the colony. Las 
Casas therefore despaired of procuring any relief for the In- 
dians, in thoee places where the Spaniards were already set- 
tled. The evil had become so inveterate there, as not to 
admit of a cure. He applied for a grant of the unoccupied 
country, stretching along the sea-coast, from the gulf of Pa- 
ria, to the v/estern frontier of that province now known by 
the name of Santa Martha. He proposed to settle there with 
a colony composed of husbandmen, labourers, and ecclesias- 
tics. He engaged, in the space of two years, to civilize 
ten-thousand of the natives, and to instruct them so thorough- 
ly in the arts of social life, that, from the fruits of their indus- 
try, an annual revenue of fifteen-thousand ducats should arise 
to the king. 

After consulting with his ministers, Charles issued a patent, 
granting to Las Casas the district of Cumana, with full power 
to establish a colony there, according to his own plan. The 
benevolent enthusiast urged forward the preparations for the 
voyage v/ith his usual ardour. But his progres's, in obtaining 
husbandmen and labourers, was extremely slow. He could 
prevail on no more than two-hundred persons to accompany 
him. Nothing, however, could damp his zeal ,' and with this 
slender train, he set sail. The first place at which he touched j 
was the island of Porto Rico. There, he received an ac- 
count of a new obstacle to the execution of his scheme, more 
insuperable than any that he had hitherto encountered. In 
order to procure slaves at an easier rate, some of the Spani* 

A. D. 1807. 



92 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

ards in Hispaniola fitted out vessels to cruise along the coast 
of the continent. In places where they found themselves 
inferior in strength, they traded with the natives ; when they 
could surprise or overpower them, they carried them off by 
force, and sold them as slaves. The Spanish name became 
detested all over the continent. Whenever any ships ap- 
peared, the inhabitants either fled to the woods, or rushed to 
the shore, in arms. They forced some parties of the Spani- 
ards to retreat with precipitation ; they cut off others ; and, 
in the violence of their resentment against the whole nation, 
they murdered two Dominican missionaries, whose zealhad 
prompted them to settle in the province of Cumana. The 
Spaniards of Hispaniola determined to inflict exemplary 
punishment, not only upon the perpetrators of that crime, 
but upon the whole race. They despatched to Cumana a 
squadron of vessels under the command of Ocampo, with 
orders to lay waste the whole country with fir^ and sword. 
This armament, Las Casas found at Porto Rico, in his way 
to the continent ; and, as Ocampo refused to defer his voyage, 
he immediately perceived that it would be impossible to at- 
tempt the execution of his pacific plan, in a country destined 
to be the seat of war and desolation. 

In ordtr to provide against the effects of this unfortunate 
incident, he sailed immediately for St. Domingo, leaving his 
followers cantoned amongst the planters in Porto Rico. By 
his activity and perseverance, he obtained a small body of 
troops, to protect him and his colony at their first landing. 
But, on his return to Porto Rico, he found that the diseases 
of the climate had been fatal to several of his people ; and 
that others, having obtained employment in that island, re- 
fused to follow him. With the few that remained, he set 
sail, and landed in Cumana. He made the best provision in 
his power, for their safety and subsistence ; but, as his utmost 
efforts availed little, towards securing either the one or the 
other, he returned to Hispaniola, in order to solicit more ef- 
fectual aid for their jpreservation. Soon after his departure, 
the natives, having discovered the feeble and defenceless 
state of the Spaniards, assembled secretly, attacked them 
with a fury natural to men exasperated by many injuries, cut 
off" a great number, and compelled the rest to fly, in the ut- 
most consternation, to Cubagua. The small colony, settled 
there on account of the pearl fishery, catching the panic with 
which their countrymen had been seized, abandoned the 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 93 

island, and not a Spaniard remained in any part of the conti- 
nent, or adjacent islands, from the gulf of Paria to the bor- 
ders of Darien. Astonished at this succession of disasters, 
Las Casas was ashamed to make his appearance, after this 
fatal termination of all his splendid schemes ; he shut him- 
self up in the convent of Dominicans at St. Domingo, and 
soon afterwards assumed the habit of that order.* 

A work entitled " The Destruction of the Indians," and 
numerous other writings by Las Casas, show him to have 
been a most pious and amiable man, and highly deserving of 
that celebrity which his name has obtained throughout the 
civilized world. 



CHAPTER VIIL 

DISCOVERY OF MEXICO BY GEIJALVA. 

We return now to the history of the Spanish discoveries, 
as they occur in the order of time. 

Several officers who had served under Pedrarias, in Darien, 
associated for the purpose of undertaking a voyage of dis- 
covery. They persuaded Francisco Hernandez Cordova, an 
opulent planter in Cuba, and a man of distinguished courage, 
to join them in the adventure, and chose him to be their 
commander. Velasquez, who was then deputy-governor of 
Cuba, not only approved of the design, but aided in its exe- 
cution. He and Cordova advanced money for purchasing 
three small vessels, and furnishing them with every thing re- 
quisite, either for traffic or for war. On board of these, one- 
hundred-and-ten men embarked, and sailed from St. Jago de 
Cuba, on the 8th of February, 1517. On the twenty-ffi-st 
day after their departure from St. Jago, they saw land, which 
proved to be Cape Catoche, the eastern point of that large 
peninsula which still retains its original name of Yucatan. 
As they approached the shore, five canoes came off, full of 
people, decently clad in cotton garments ; an astonishing 

* Worn out with infirmitips, he left America 'm 1551 and returned ta 
Madrid} where he died in 1566, 



94 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

spectacle to the Spaniards, who had found every other part 
of America possessed by naked savages. Cordova endea- 
voured, by small presents, to gain their good will. They 
invited the Spaniards to visit their habitations : they accord- 
ingly landed, and, as they advanced into the country, they 
observed, with new wonder, some large houses built of stone. 
But they soon founds that, if the people of Yucatan surpassed 
their countrymen in domestic improvement, they were like- 
wise more skilful in the art of war. Though the cazique 
received Cordova with many tokens of friendship, he had 
posted a considerable body of his subjects in ambush, behind 
a thicket, who, on a given signal, rushed out, and attacked 
the Spaniards with great boldness, and some degree of mili- 
tary order. By the first flight of their arrows, fifteen of the 
Spaniards were wounded ; but the Indians were so terrified 
by the sudden explosion of the fire-arms, and so surprised at 
the execution done by them, as well as by the cross-bows, and 
other weapons of their new enemies, that they fled with pre- 
cipitation. 

The Spaniards seemed equally alarmed. Cordova quitted 
a country where he had met so fierce a reception, carrying 
off* two prisoners, together with the ornaments of a small 
temple, which he had plundered in his retreat. 

He continued his course to the west, and on the 16th, ar- 
rived at Campeachy. As the water began to fail on board 
his vessels, he entered the mouth of a river at Potonchan, 
and landed all his troops, in order to protect the sailors while 
employed in filling the casks : but, notwithstanding this pre- 
caution, the natives rushed down upon them so furiously, 
that forty-seven of the Spaniards were killed on the spot, and 
one man only, of the whole body, escaped unhurt. Their 
commander, though wounded in twelve different places, di- 
rected the retreat with presence of mind equal to the cou- 
rage with which he had led them on to the engagement, and 
with much difficulty they regained their ships. After this 
fatal repulse, nothing remained but to hasten back to Cuba 
with their shattered forces. In their passage thither, they 
suffered the most exquisite distress, from want of water : some 
of them, sinking under their calamities, died by the way; 
Cordova died soon after they landed at Cuba. 

Notwithstanding the disastrous conclusion of this expedi- 
tion, it served rather to animate than to damp the spirit of 
enterprise amongst the Spaniards. Great numbers offered to 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 95 

engage in a new expedition. Solicitous to distinguish him- 
self by some achievement, so meritorious as might entitle 
him to claim the government of Cuba, independent of the 
admiral, Velasquez not only encouraged their ardour, but, at 
his own expense, fitted out four ships for the voyage. Two- 
hundred-and-forty volunteers, amongst whom were several 
persons of rank and fortune, embarked in this enterprise. 
The command was given to Juan de Grijalva, a young man 
of known merit and courage, with instructions to observe at- 
tentively the nature of the countries which he should dis- 
cover, to barter for gold, and, if circumstances were inviting, 
to settle a colony in some proper station. He sailed from St. 
Jago de Cuba on the 8th of April, 1518. The first land 
which they descried, was the island of Cozumel, to the east 
of Yucatan ; but, as all the inhabitants fled to the woods and 
mountains at the approach of the Spaniards, they made only 
a short stay there, and, without any remarkable occurrence, 
they reached Potonchan, on the opposite side of the penin- 
sula. From Potonchan, they continued their voyage towards 
the west, keeping as near as possible to the shore, and cast- 
ing anchor every evening, from dread of the dangerous acci- 
dents to which they might be exposed in an unknown sea* 
During the day, their eyes were turned continually towards 
land, with a mixture of surprise and wonder at the beauty of 
the country, as well as the novelty of the objects. Many 
\dllages were scattered along the coast, in which they could 
distinguish houses, that appeared white and lofty at a dis- 
tance. In the warmth of their admiration, they fancied these 
to be cities adorned with towers and pinnacles ; and one of 
the soldiers happening to remark that this country in its ap- 
pearance resembled Spain, Grijalva, with universal applause, 
called it New Spain. They first landed on the banks of a 
river which the natives called Tobasco ; and next at a place, 
to the west of that river, in the province since known by the 
name of Guaxaca ; where, in six days, the Spaniards, in ex- 
change for European toys of small price, obtained ornaments 
of gold, of curious workmanship, to the value of fifteen- 
thousand pesos.* 

The two prisoners brought by Cordova from Yucatan, had 
hitherto served as interpreters ; but, as they did not under- 
stand the language of this country, the Spaniards learned 

* A peso was equal to about five shillings sterling. 



06 History of south America. 

ffom the natives, by signs, that they were subjects of a great 
monarch, called Montezuma, whose dominion extended over 
that and many other provinces. 

Continuing his course towards the west, he landed on a 
small island, which he named the Isle of Sacrifices, and touch- 
ed at another small island, which he called St. Juan de Ulua. 
From this place, he despatched Pedro de Alvarado, one of 
his officers, to Velasquez, with an account of his important 
discoveries, and the treasure which he had acquired by traf- 
fic ; and, after his departure, he proceeded along the coast, 
as far as the river Panuco, the country still appearing to be 
well peopled, fertile^ and opulent. 

Several of Grijalva's officers contended that it was not 
enough to have discovered those delightful regions, or to have 
performed the empty ceremony of taking possession of them 
for the crown of Castile, and that their glory was incomplete, 
unless they planted a colony in some proper station, which 
might enable them gradually to subject the whole to the do- 
minion of their sovereign. But, though possessed both of 
ambition and courage, Grijalva was destitute of the superior 
talents capable either of forming or of executing so great a 
plan. He judged it more prudent to return to Cuba, having 
fulfilled the purpose of his voyage, and accomplished all 
that the armament which he commanded enabled him to per- 
form. He returned to St. Jago on the 26th of October, after 
an absence of about six months. 

This was the longest, as well as the most successful voyage 
hitherto made by the Spaniards in the new world. Tran- 
sported by his good fortune, so far beyond his most sanguine 
expectations, Velasquez immediately despatched a person to 
carry this important intelligence to Spain, to exhibit the rich 
productions of the countries which had been discovered by 
his means, and to solicit so great an increase of authority, as 
might enable and encourage him to attempt their conquest. 
Without waiting for the return of his messenger, or for the 
arrival of Grijalva, of whom he had become so jealous or dis- 
trustful, that he had resolved no longer to employ him, he 
began to prepare an armament so powerful as might prove 
equal to an enterprise of so much danger and importance. 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 97 



CHAPTER IX, 

INTERESTING NARRATIVE OP THE SPANISH CAPTIVE.— DEATH 
OF MONTEZUMA. — -CONQUEST OF MEXICO, BY CORTES. 

- V, ^ Twenty-six years had elapsed, since Columbus con- 
ducted the people of Europe to the new world. During 
that period, the Spaniards had made great progress in explor- 
ing its various regions. They had visited all the islands scat- 
tered in different clusters through that part of the ocean 
which flows in between North and South America. They 
had sailed along the eastern coast of the continent, from the 
river De la Plata to the bottom of the Mexican Gulf, and had 
found that it stretched without interruption through this vast 
portion of the globe. They had discovered the great South- 
ern Ocean, which opened new prospects in that quarter. They 
had acquired some knowledge of the coast of Florida, which 
led them to observe the continent as it stretched in an oppo- 
site direction 5 and, though they extended their discoveries 
no farther towards the norths other nations had visited those 
parts which they had neglected. The English had sailed 
along the coast of America, from Labrador to the confines of 
Florida; and the Portuguese, in quest of a shorter passage 
to the East Indies, had ventured into the northern seas, and 
viewed the same regions. Thus, its extent was known, al- 
most from its northern extremity to thirty-five degrees south 
of the equator. The countries which stretch thence to the 
southern boundary of America, the great empire of Peru, 
and the interior state of the extensive dominions subject to 
the sovereigns of Mexico, were still undiscovered. 

When Grijalva returned to Cuba, he found the armament 
destined to attempt the conquest of that rich country which 
he had discovered, almost complete. Not only ambition, but 
avarice had urged Velasquez to hasten his preparations ; and, 
having such a prospect of gratifying both, he had advanced 
considerable sums, out of his private fortune, towards defray- 
ing the expense of the expedition* 

The person to whom he intrusted the command, was Fer- 
nando Cortes. He was born at Medellin, a small town in 
Estramadura, in the year 1485, and descended from a family 



^8 History of south America. 

of noble blood, but of very moderate fortune. Originally 
destined by his parents to the study of law, he was sent early 
to the university of Salamanca. But he was soon disgusted 
with an academic life, which did not suit his ardent and rest- 
less genius, and retired to Medellin, where he devoted him- 
self entirely to active sports and martial exercises. At this 
period of life, he was so impetuous, so overbearing, and so 
dissipated, that his father was glad to comply with his indig- 
nation, and send him abroad as an adventurer in arms. 
When he landed at St. Domingo in the year 1504, his recep- 
tion equalled his most sanguine hopes, and he was employed 
by the governor in several honourable and lucrative stations. 
These, however, did not satisfy his ambition; and, in 1511^ 
he obtained permission to accompany Diego Velasquez in his 
expedition to Cuba. In this service, he distinguished him- 
self so much, that, notwithstanding some violent contests 
with Velasquez, occasioned by trivial events, unworthy of re- 
membrance, he was at length taken into favour, and received 
an ample concession of lands and of Indians, the recompense 
usually bestowed upon adventurers in the new world. 

Receiving his commission with the warmest expressions 
of respect and gratitude to the governor, Cortes immediately 
erected his standard before his own house, appeared in a mi- 
litary dress, and assumed all the ensigns of his new dignity. 
His utmost influence and activity were exerted in persuad- 
ing many of his friends to engage in the service, and in urg- 
ing forward the preparations for the voyage. All his own 
funds, together with what money he could raise by mort- 
gaging his lands and Indians, were expended, in purchasing 
military stores and provisions, or in supplying the wants of 
those officers who were unable to equip themselves in a man- 
ner suited to their rank. He urged forward his preparations 
with so great rapidity, that he sailed from St. Jago de Cuba 
on the 18th of November; Velasquez accompanying him to 
the shore, and taking leave of him with an appearance of 
perfect friendship and confidence, though he had secretly 
given it in charge to some of Cortes's officers, to keep a 
Watchful eye on every part of their commander's conduct. 

Cortes proceeded to Trinidad, a small settlement on the 
feame side of the island, where he was joined by several ad- 
venturers, and received a supply of provisions and military 
stores, of which his stock was still very incomplete. He had 
hardly left St. Jago, when the jealousy which had been work- 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 99 

ing in the breast of Velasquez, grew so violent that it was 
impossible to suppress it. The armament was no longer un- 
der his own eye and direction ; and he felt, that as his own 
power over it ceased, that of Cortes would become more ab- 
solute. Imagination now aggravated every circumstance, 
which had formerly excited suspicion : the rivals of Cortes 
industriously threw in reflections which increased his fears 5 
and, with no less art than malice, they called superstition to 
their aid, employing the predictions of an astrologer, in order 
to complete the alarm. All these, by their united operation, 
produced the desired effect, Velasquez repented bitterly of 
his own imprudence, in having committed a trust of so much 
importance to a person whose fidelity appeared so doubtful, 
and hastily despatched instructions to Trinidad, empowering 
Verdugo, the chief magistrate there, to deprive Cortes of his 
commission. But Cortes had already made such progress in 
gaining the esteem and confidence of his troops, that, find-> 
ing officers as well as soldiers equally zealous to support his 
authority, he soothed or intimidated Verdugo, and was per- 
mitted to depart from Trinidad without molestation. 

From Trinidad, Cortes sailed for the Havanna, in order to 
raise more soldiers, and to complete the victualling of his fleet. 
There, several persons of distinction entered into the service, 
and engaged to supply v/hat provisions were still wanting. 
Every thing was now ready for his departure; but, though 
this expedition was fitted out by the united effort of the Spa- 
nish power in Cuba ; though every settlement had contributed 
its quota of men and provisions ; though the governor had 
laid out considerable sums, and each adventurer had exhaust- 
ed his stock, or strained his credit, the poverty of the pre- 
parations was such as must astonish the present age, and bore, 
indeed, no resemblance to an armament destined for the con- 
quest of a great empire. The fleet consisted of eleven ves- 
sels ; the largest of a hundred tons, which was dignified by 
the name of admiral; three of seventy or eighty tons, and 
the rest small open barks. On board these, were six-hun- 
dred-and -seventeen men: of whom, five-hundred-and-eight 
belonged to the land-service, and a hundred-and-nine were 
seamen or artificers. The soldiers were divided into eleven 
companies, according to the number of the ships ; to each 
of which, Cortes appointed a captain, committing to him the 
command of the vessel while at sea, and of the men when 
on shore. As the use of fire-arms amongst the nations of 



100 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

Europe, was, in that age, confined to a few battalions of re- 
gularly disciplined infantry, only thirteen soldiers were armed 
with muskets, thirty-two were cross-bow men, and the rest 
had swords and spears. Instead of the usual defensive ar- 
mour, which must have been cumbrous in a hot climate, the 
soldiers wore jackets quilted with cotton, which experience 
had taught the Spaniards to be a sufficient protection against 
the weapons of the Americans. They had only sixteen 
horses, ten small field pieces, and four falconets. 
rj in With this slender and ill-provided train, did 
■ %' ' Cortes set sail, to make war upon a monarch whose 
dominions were more extensive than all the kirg- 
doms subject to the Spanish crown. As religious enthusiasm 
always mingled with the spirit of adventure in the new world, 
and, by a combination still more strange, united with avarice, 
in prompting the Spaniards to all their enterprises, a large 
cross was displayed in their standards, with this inscription, 
'' Let us follow the cross, for under this sign we shall conquer." 

As Cortes had determined to touch at every place visited 
by Grijalva, be steered directly towards the island of Cozu- 
mel. Here, having mustered his little army, he addressed 
them in the following manner : 

" When I consider, my friends and companions, the good 
fortune that has brought us together in this island, the obsta- 
cles that v/e have surmounted, the persecutions over which 
we have triumphed, and the difficulties which have opposed 
our enterprise, I acknowledge the hand of God in the work 
we have undertaken, and promise myself success from be- 
ginnings so remarkably favoured by his divine providence, in 
our zeal for the service of God and our king ; the same that 
has animated us to undertake the conquest of these unknown 
regions ;— and the Almighty, in fighting our cause, will fight 
his own. I have no design to lessen the danger of the un- 
dertaking. We are to expect bloody engagements, incredible 
fatigues, and such multitudes of enemies, that it will require 
all your valour to sustain their attacks ; at the same time, theat 
want of necessaries, inclemencies of weather, and difficult 
marches, will exercise your constancy, which is accounted a 
second-rate valour, and shows as much greatness of spirit as 
the first; for, very often, in war, an object is accomplished 
by patience, which could not be effected by force. By this, 
Hercules gained the name of Invincible, and his exploits were 
called Lalmurs. Antiquity has painted the Temple of Fam«^ 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AlVIERICA. 101 

on the highest part of the mountain, and her image on the 
highest part of the temple ; thereby, causing us to under- 
stand, that, in order to find her, after we have gained the top 
of the mountain, we must look higher still. We are but few 
in number ; but union adds strength to armies, and serves ta 
multiply them. In our agreement, consists our greatest 
strength. We must, my friends, be all of one mind to re- 
solve, snd as one hand to execute. Our interests should be 
the same, and the glory of conquest ought to be equally 
shared amongst us. The valour of every one in particular, 
must establish the security of all in general. I am your 
commander, and will be the first to hazard my life for the 
humblest of my soldiers. I shall lead you on, by example, 
to the execution of my orders; assuring you, that I find in 
myself a spirit sufficient to undertake the conquest of a 
whole world : and this hope is cherished by an extraordinary 
and indefinable impulse, the most promising of all presages. 
To conclude, — let our words be succeeded by actions ; and 
let not my confidence be thought temerity, since it is so well 
supported by you, from v/hom I expect every thing that is 
wanting in myself." 

At a short distance from the coast, stood the temple of the 
idol, so much revered by these Indians. It was a square 
building of stone, and of no contemptible architecture. The 
idol bore the figure of a man, but of a very terrible aspect. 
" All the idols, worshiped by these miserable people," ob- 
serves an eminent Spanish historian,* " were formed in the 
same manner : though they diflfered in the make and repre- 
sentation, they were all alike most abominably ugly ; whether 
it was that these barbarians had no notion of any other model, 
or that the devil really appeared to them in such a shape ; sa 
that he who struck out the most hideous figure, was accounted 
the best workman." 

The Spaniards found a great concourse of Indians at the 
temple ; and in the midst of them a priest, distinguished 
from the rest by a certain ornament, or scanty covering, not 
suflicient for the purpose of decency, to a European eye. 
" He seemed to preach, and to persuade them to something, 
by a tone and gesture extremely ridiculous; for he gave 
himself the airs of a preacher, with all the gravity and au- 

♦ De Solis. 
x2 



102 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

thority which a man dressed in so inappropriate a manner^ 
could assume." 

The visit of Cortes to the island of Cozaniel, was the means 
of redeeming a Spaniard, who had been for many years a 
prisoner amongst the Indians. One of the natives v»^as heard 
repeating, in an imperfect manner, the name of CastiUa, and 
Cortes, whom nothing could ever divert from pursuing his 
main point, observed the word, and commanded the inter- 
preter to inquire into its meaning. The Indians said that 
the Spaniards very much resembled certain prisoners who 
were in Yucatan, natives of a country called Castilla, This, 
Cortes no sooner heard, than he resolved to set them at liberty, 
and engage them in his service. On making more particular 
inquiry, he found that they were in the power of some In- 
dians of the highest rank, residing two days farther \>ithin 
the province of Yucatan. He consulted with the cazique of 
Cozumel, and arranged with him the manner of their ran- 
som. He immediately ordered Diego de Ordaz to sail to the 
coast of Yucatan, by the shortest route, which was about four 
leagues over : there, he was to land the Indians appointed by 
the cazique for this purpose, who carried a letter from Cortes 
to the prisoners, and some trifles for their ransom ; and Or- 
daz was directed to wait eight days, in which time the In- 
dians undertook to return with an answer. 

The eight days, however, elapsed, and Ordaz returned lO 
the island, without bringing any intelligence, either of the 
captives, or the Indians who had been sent in quest of them. 
Cortes was highly displeased ; but, supposing that the latter 
had deceived him by false intelligence, in order to convert 
to their own use the presents sent by him for their ransom, 
he was unwilling any longer to delay his voyage, or to im- 
part his suspicions to the cazique. He was just on the point 
of embarking, when there was discovered,^^ at a distance, a 
canoe, crossing the gulf of Yucatan, and steering directly 
for the island. She was filled ivith armed Indians, who used 
surprising diligence in their approach, without showing any 
fear of the Spanish fleet. Informed of this, Cortes directed 
Andres de Tapia to place himself in ambush neai- tho place 
where the canoe was to land the Indians, and to discover 
their designs. De Tapia took his post accordingly, where he 
could not be seen : but, finding that they came on shore with 
their bows and arrows, he suffered them to pass him a little 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. lOS 

way from the coast, and then cut off their retreat. When 
the Indians discovered him, they fled ; but one person amongst 
them stopped, and, advancmg a few paces^ exclaimed, with a 
loud voice, in the Castilian tongue, that he was a Christian. 
De Tapia received him with open arms, and, full of joy for 
his good fortune, conducted him to the general, followed by 
the Indians, who appeared to be the messengers left by Diego 
de Ordaz, on the coast of Yucatan. The stranger was almost 
naked. On one shoulder, he carried a bow and quiver ; over 
the other, v/as thrown a mantle, like a cloak, in one corner 
cf which was tied the " office of the church," which he im- 
mediately showed to the Spaniards, ascribing to his devotions 
the good fortune of seeing himself again amongst christians. 
He made his compliments very awkwardly, being under the 
influence, rather of his newly acquired, than of his native 
manners, and could not deliver what he had to say, without 
intermixing with his Spanish, some words that were not un- 
derstood. Cortes received him with the warmest and most 
joyful caresses ; and, covering him v/ith his own cloak, or- 
dered that he should be clothed and refreshed. 

This man was called Jerome de Aguilar, and was a native 
of Ecija, where he had received deacon's orders ; and, ac- 
cording to the account afterwards given by him of his adven- 
tures, he had been nearly eight years a captive amongst the 
Indians. — " I was shipwrecked," said he, " in £U3aravel, upon 
the flats of the Alacranes, when passing fromDarien to the is- 
land of St. Domingo ; and, escaping in the boat, with twenty 
more in company, was driven upon the shore of Yucatan. We 
were taken, and thence carried tc a country of Caribbee In- 
dians,whose cazique immediately selected the best fed amongst 
us, to offer to his idols, intending afterwards to feast upon the 
remains of the cruel sacrifice. One of those who were re- 
served for a future occasion, by reason of our leanness, was 
myself^ They treated me with great rigour, buty. at the same 
time, inhumanly feasted me, that I might be in a better con- 
dition to furnish a second banquet. I contrived to escape 
from a wooden cage, in which I was confined ;, not so niuch 
with a hope to save my life,, as a desire to, seek another kind 
of death ; and, v/andering for several days at a distance from, 
every habitation, without any other nourishment than the 
wild herbs of the field, I fell into the hands of certain In- 
dians, who presented me to their cazique, — an enemy to hint 
ixom whom, I had escaoed. This master used me with moxe: 



104 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

humanity, either that he might exhibit a contrast to the other, 
or perhaps because he had a real aversion to his cruelties. I 
served him for several years, running through different for- 
tunes in this new slavery, for at first he compelled me to 
work beyond my strength : but he afterwards treated me bet- 
ter, being seemingly pleased with my obedience, and espe- 
cially with my modesty — for there is no temper so barbarous,, 
as to be wholly void of the regard due to virtue. Accord- 
ingly, the cazique gave me an employment near his person,^ 
and in a short time I acquired hi& esteem and confidence. 

" This cazique dying, recommended me to his son, under 
whom I held the same employment, and found a favourable 
occasion to increase my credit. The neighbouring caziques 
having made war against him, I gained several victories over 
them, by my military skill, and thereupon became so great a 
favourite, both of the prince and the people, and enjoyed so 
much authority when I received the letter from Cortes, that 
I could without difficulty treat for my liberty, as the recom- 
pence of my services, and offer, as my own gift, the presents 
sent as my ransom." 

Thus, did Aguilar relate his adventures ,* adding, besides, 
that, of the rest of the Spanish captives, there remained alive 
only one sailor, called Gonzalo Guerrero ; and that he had 
communicated to him the letter of Cortes, and endeavoured 
to bring him^ith him, but without effect. He had married 
a rich Indian, by whom he had three or four children, and 
very justly excused his stay by his natural affection for hi& 
offspring, and his love for a virtuous wife. 
, The ransom of Aguilar was an event alike fortunate for 
himself, and advantageous to Cortes. He was perfectly ac- 
quainted with a dialect of the Indian language, understood 
through a large extent of country, and, possessing besides a 
considerable share of prudence and sagacity, proved highly 
useful as an interpreter. 

From Cozumel, Cortes proceeded to the river of Tabasco^ 
in hopes of a reception as friendly as Grijalva had expe- 
rienced there, and of finding gold in the same abundance ; 
but the disposition of the natives, from some unknown cause, 
was totally changed. After repeated endeavours to conciliate 
their good will^ he was constrained to have recourse to vio- 
lence. Though the forces of the enemy were numerous, and 
advanced with extraordinary courage, they were routed with 
great slaughter, in several successive actions. The loss whick 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AIvIERrCA. 105 

they sustained, and stiil more the astonishment and terror ex- 
cited by the desiructive effect of the fire-arms, and the dreadful 
appearance of the horses, humbled their fierce spirits, and 
induced them to sue for peace. They acknowledged the king 
of Castile as their sovereign, and granted Cortes a supply of 
provisions, with a present of cotton garments, some gold, and 
twenty female slaves. In those different conflicts, the Spa- 
niards lost only two men, but they had a considerable number 
wounded. Though there is no occasion to have recourse to 
any cupernacural cause, to account either for the greatness 
of their victorie^?, or the smallness of their loss, yet the Spa- 
nish historians iail not to ascribe both to the patronage of St. 
Jago, the tutelar saint of their country ; who, as they relate, 
fought at the head of the Spaniards, and, by his prowess, gave 
a turn to the fate of the battle. 

Jf may not be uninteresting to describe here the warlike 
weapons of the Indians, their manner of marching and en- 
gaging, which may serve on all occasions in this conquest, 
the art of war being nearly che same amongst all the nations 
of Nev/ Spain. Most of their weapons Avere bows and arrows : 
the bov/-strings were made of the sinews of beasts, or of 
<^hongs of deer-skin, twisted ; their arrows, for want of iron, 
V ere headed with bones ground sharp. They also used a 
kind of darts, which sometimes they threw, and at other times 
they managed like a pike. They had likewise long swords, 
w^hich they managed with both hands, made of wood, in 
which they fixed sharp flints. The strongest of them had 
clubs, in wnich were inserted flints ; and there were slingers, 
who threw stones with great force and skill. The defensive 
arms, which were used only by commanders and persons of 
distinction, were coats of quilted cotton, ill-fitted breast- 
plates, and shields of wood or tortoise-shell, adorned with 
plates of such metal as they could procure. For this purpose, 
some used gold, as we do iron. The rest were naked, and 
all were hideously painted with various colours ; a martial 
sort of ornamentj designed to strike terror into their enemies ; 
as Caesar relates of the Britains, and Tacitus of the Arii, a 
people of Germany, the latter remarking that an impression 
on the eye is the first step to victory. Their heads were 
'overed vrith plumes of feathers, like crowns, raised on high, 
to m?ke them look taller. They had also warlike instru- 
ments of music, v/ith which they animated their soldiers, and 
m^de signals; as ilatez made of large canes* sea-shells; aiwl 



X06 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

a sort of drums, made of the trunk of a tree — They formed 
their battalions of great numbers, without any order ; but had 
troops of reserve, to relieve where there was occasion. They 
attacked with great fury, and terrible outcries, with which 
they thought to intimidate their enemies ; a custom which 
some have accounted amongst the brutalities of those Indians, 
without observing that it has been used by many ancient 
nations, and not despised even by the Romans. Cassar, in 
his Commentaries, commends the cries of his own soldiers, 
and blames the silence of those of Pompey ; and Cato the 
elder was accustomed to say, that he had gained more victo- 
ries by the cries of the soldiers, than by their swords ; both 
of them being of opinion that the cries proceeded from the 
courage that was in their heart. — The Indians were divided 
into companies, whose captains led, but could scarcely go- 
vern their men ; for, when they entered into battle, they 
were directed either by fear or rage, as is usual amongst such 
multitudes, being equally eager to attack and to run away. 

Cortes continued his course to the westward, keeping as 
near the shore as possible, in order to observe the country; 
but could discover no place for landing, until he arrived at 
St. Juan de Ulua. As he entered this harbour, a large ca-. 
noe, full of people, airxongst whom were two who seemed to 
be persons of distinction, approached his ship, with signs of 
peace and amity. They came on board without fear or dis- 
trust, and addressed him in a most respectful manner, but in 
a language altogether unknown to Aguilar. Cortes was in 
the utmost perplexity and distress, at an event of which he 
instantly foresaw the consequences ; and already felt the hesi- 
tation and uncertainty with which he should carry on the 
great schemes which he meditated, if, in his transactions 
with the natives, he must depend entirely upon so imperfect, 
ambiguous, and conjectural a mode of communication, as the 
use of signs. But he did not remain long in his embarrass^ 
ing situation : a fortunate accident extricated him, when his 
own sagacity could have contributed little towards his relief. 
One of the female slaves, whom he had received from the 
cazique of Tabasco, happened to be present at the first inter- 
view between Cortes and his new guests. She perceived his 
distress, as well as the confusion of Aguilar ; and, as she per- 
fectly understood the Mexican language, she explained what 
they had said in the Yucatan tongue, with which Aguilar 
was acq^uainted. This woman, known afterwards by the 



IfiSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 107 

name of Marina, and who makes a conspicuous figure in the 
history of the new world, where great revolutions were 
brought about by small causes and inconsiderable instruments, 
was born in one of the provinces of the Mexican empire* 
Having been sold as a slave in the early part of her life, 
after a variety of adventures she fell into the hands of the 
Tabascans, and had resided long enough amongst them to ac- 
quire their language, without losing the use of her own. 
Though it was both tedious and troublesome to converse by 
the intervention of two different interpreters, Cortes was so 
highly pleased with having discovered this method of carry- 
ing on some intercourse with the people of a country into 
which he was determined to penetrate, that in the transports 
of his joy he considered it as a visible interposition of Provi" 
dence in his favour. 

He now learned, that the two persons whom he had re- 
ceived on board his ship, were deputies from Teutile and 
Pilpatoe, two officers entrusted with the government of that 
province, by a great monarch, whom they called Montezuma; 
and that they were sent to inquire what his intentions were 
in visiting their coast, and to offer him what assistance he 
might need, in order to continue his voyage. Cortes, struck 
with the appearance of those people, as well as the tenor of 
the message, assured them, in respectful terms, that he ap- 
proached their country with most friendly sentiments, and 
came to propose matters of great importance to the welfare 
of their prince and his kingdom, which he would unfold 
more fully, in person, to the governor and the general. Next 
morning, without waiting for any answer, he landed his 
troops, his horses, and artillery ; and having chosen proper 
ground, began to erect huts for his men, and to fortify his 
camp. 

Next day, Teutile and Pilpatoe entered the Spanish cam.p 
with a numerous retinue, and Cortes, considering them as 
the ministers of a great monarch, entitled to a degree of at- 
tention very different from that which the Spaniards were 
accustomed to pay to the petty caziques, with whom they 
had intercourse in the isles, received them with much formal 
ceremony. He informed them, that he came as ambassador 
from Don Carlos of Austria, king of Castile, the greatest mon- 
arch of the East, and was intrusted with propositions of such 
moment, that he could impart them to none but the emperor 
Montezuma himself, and therefore required them to conduct 



i08 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMEmGA. 

him, without loss of time, into the presence of their mastei*. 
The Mexican officers could not conceal their uneasiness at a 
request, which they knew would be disagreeable, and which 
they foresaw might prove extrem.ely embarrassing to tlieir 
sovereign, whose mind had been filled v/ith many disquiet- 
ing apprehensions, ever since the former appearance of the 
Spaniards on his coasts. But, before they attempted to dis- 
suade Cortes from insisting on this demand, they endeavoured 
to conciliate his good will, by entreating him to accept of 
certain presents, which, as humble slaves of Montezuma, 
they laid at his feet. They were introduced with great pa- 
rade, and consisted of line cotton cloth, plumes of various 
colours, and ornaments of gold and silver, to a considerable 
value ; the workmanship of which appeared to be as curious, 
as the materials were rich. The display of these produced 
an effect very different from what the Mexicans intended. 
Instead of satisfying, it increased the avidity of the Spaniards, 
and rendered them so eager and impatient to become mas- 
ters of a country which abounded with so precious produc- 
tions, that Cortes could hardly listen with patience to the 
arguments which Pilpatoe and Teutile employed to dissuade 
him from visiting the capital ; and, in a haughty determined 
tone he insisted on his demand, of being admitted to a per- 
sonal audience of their sovereign. During this interviewj 
some painters, in the train of the Mexican chiefs, had been 
diligently employed in delineating, upon white cotton cloths, 
figures of the ships, the horses, the artillery, the soldiers, 
and whatever else attracted their eyes, as singular. When 
Cortes observed this, and was informed that these pictures 
were to be sent to Montezuma, in order to convey to him a 
more lively idea of the strange and wonderful objects now 
presented to their view, than any words could communicate, 
he resolved to render the representation still more animated 
and interesting, by exhibiting such a spectacle as might give 
both them and their monarch an awful impression cf the ex- 
traordinary prowess of his followers, and the irresistible force 
of their arms. The trumpets, by his order, sounded an 
alarm; the troops, in a moment, formed in order of battle, 
the infantry performed such martial exercises as were best 
suited to display the effect of their different weapons ; the 
horse, in various evolutions, gave a specimen of their agility 
and strength ; the artillery, pointed towards the thick woods 
which surrounded the camp, were fired, and made dreadful 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 109 

kavoc amongst the trees. The Mexicans looked on with that 
silent amazement which is natural when the mind is struck 
with objects, which are both awful and above its comprehen- 
sion^ But, at the explosion of the cannon, many of them 
fled, some fell to the ground, and all were so much confound- 
ed at the sight of men whose power so nearly resembled that 
of the gods, that Cortes found it difficult to compose and re- 
assure them. 

Messengers v/ere immediately despatched to Montezuma, 
with those pictures, and a full account of every thing that 
had passed since the arrival of the Spaniards ; and by them 
Cortes sent a present of some European curiosities to Mon- 
tezuma, which, though of no great value, he believed would 
be acceptable on account of their novelty. 

The Mexican monarchs, in order to obtain early informa- 
tion of every occurrence in ail parts of their extensive em- 
pire, had introduced a refinement in police, unknown at that 
time, in Europe. They had couriers posted at proper sta- 
tions, along the principal roads ; and, as these wete trained, 
to agility by regular practice, and relieved one another at 
moderate distances, they conveyed intelligence with surpris- 
ing rapidity. Though the capital in which Montezuma re- 
sided, was above a-hundred-and-eighty miles from St. Juan 
de Ulua, the presents of Cortes were carried thither, and an 
answer to his demands was received, in seven days. The 
same officers who had hitherto treated with the Spaniards, 
were employed to deliver his answer ; but, as they knew how 
repugnant the determination of their master was to all the 
schemes and wishes of the Spanish commander, they would 
not venture to make it known, until tliey had previously en- 
deavoured to soothe and conciliate him. For this purpose, 
they renewed their negotiation, by introducing a train of a 
hundred Indians, loaded with presents sent to him by Mon- 
tezuma* The magnificence of these was such as became a 
great monarch, and far exceeded any idea hitherto formed by 
the Spaniards, of his wealth. They were placed on mats 
spread on the ground, in such order^ as shewed them, to the 
greatest advantage. Cortes and his officers viewed, with ad- 
miration, the various manufactures of the country ; cotton 
stuffs, so fine, and of so delicate a texture, as to resemble 
silk; pictures of animals, treesj and other natural objects, 
formed with feathers of diflferent colours, disposed and min- 
gled with such skill and elegance, as to rival the works of 
K 



llO History of south America. 

the pencil, in truth and beauty of imitation. But what chiefly 
attracted their eyes, were two large plates of a circular form ; 
one of massive gold, representing the sun, the other of silver, 
an emblem of the moon. The value of the latter plate, alone, 
is said to have been more than twenty-thousand dollars. 
These were accompanied with bracelets, collars, rings, and 
other trinkets of gold ; and, that nothing might be wanting 
which could give the Spaniards a complete idea of what the 
country afforded, with some boxes filled with pearls, precious 
stones, and grains of gold unwrought, as they had been found 
in the mines or rivers. Cortes received all these with an 
appearance of profound veneration for the monarch by whom 
they were bestowed. But when the Mexicans, presuming 
upon this, informed him, that their master, though he desired 
him to accept of what he had sent, as a token of regard for 
that monarch whom Cortes represented, would not give his 
consent that foreign troops should approach nearer to his 
capital, or even allow them to continue longer in his dominions, 
the Spanish general declared, in a manner more resolute and 
peremptory than formerly, that he must insist on his first 
demand, as he could not, without dishonour, return to his 
own country, until he was admitted into the presence of the 
prince whom he was appointed to visit in the name of his 
sovereign. The Mexicans, astonished at seeing any man 
dare to oppose that will, which they were accustomed to con- 
sider as supreme and irresistible ; yet afraid of precipitating 
their country into an open rupture with so formidable ene- 
mies ; prevailed with Cortes to promise, that he would not 
move from his present camp, until the return of a messenger, 
whom they sent to Montezuma for further instructions. 

The firmness with which Cortes adhered to his original 
proposal, should naturally have brought the negotiation be* 
tween him and Montezuma to a speedy issue, as it seemed 
to leave the Mexican monarch no choice, but either to re- 
ceive him with confidence as a friend, or to oppose him 
openly as an enemy. The latter was what might have been 
expected, from a haughty prince in possession of extensive 
power. The Mexican empire, at this period, was at a pitch 
of grandeur, to which no other society had ever attained in so 
short a period. Though it had subsisted, according to their 
own traditions, only a-hundred-and-thirty-years, its dominion 
extended from the Atlantic to the Pacific ocean, over ter- 
jitories stretching, with some small interruption, above five* 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. IH 

hundred leagues from east to west, and more than two-hun^ 
dred from north to south, comprehending provinces not 
inferior, in fertility, population, and opulence, to any in the 
torrid zone. 

Of all the princes who had swayed the Mexican sceptre> 
Montezuma was the most haughty, the most violent, and the 
most impatient of control. His subjects looked up to him 
with awe, and his enemies with terror. The former, he go-, 
verned with unexampled rigour, but they were impressed 
with such an opinion of his capacity, as commanded their 
respect ; and by many victories over the latter, he had spread 
far the dread of his arms, and had added several considerable 
provinces to his dominions. 

Montezuma was the eleventh king, according to their 
painted annals, and the second of that name, that had sat on 
the throne of the Mexican empire. He was of the royal 
blood, and in his youth devoted himself to war, in which he 
gained the reputation of a valiant captain. He returned to 
court, in no small degree inflated by the flatteries of fame; 
and, finding himself applauded and respected as the first man 
of his nation, he entertained hopes of grasping the sceptre 
at the next election. 

As the first step to that elevation, he laboured industriously 
to gain friends. He affected great veneration for his king, 
extraordinary modesty and CQ||posure in all his actions, and 
tempered the severity of his manners, with liberality in the 
distribution of favours. He also gained the character of 
being very zealous in attention to his religion ; a powerful 
motive to captivate those who are imposed upon by outward 
show. To this end, he erected a little separate altar, in the 
most frequented temple, in the form of a tribune ; to which> 
he retired in the view of all the people ; staying there many 
hoars to attend to that popular devotion, or the placing of the 
idol of his ambition amongst his other gods. By these hypo-, 
critical arts, he gained so much reputation, that when the 
king, his predecessor, died, he received the unanimous vote 
of the electors, and was hailed with loud acclamations by the 
people. Like many aspiring politicians, in what is called 
the civilized world, he suffered himself to be courted to ac-- 
cept what he had desired, and seemed to yield to the popular 
wishes with reluctance: but, no sooner was he possessed of 
the imperial throne, than all that artifice, with which he had 
disguised his natural disposition, cea.sed, and he discovered 



112 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA, 

those vices which he had hitherto covered with the show of 
virtues. 

He had reigned fourteen years, when Cortes arrived in 
Mexico. During this period, many provinces had rebelled 
against his authority ; but none of his subjects continued to 
resist his power, except the people of Mechoacan, Tlascala, 
and Tepeaca ; and he was accustomed to say that he did not 
subdue them, because he vfanted those enemies to supply 
him with captives for the sacrifices of his gods. 

From the moment that the Spaniards appeared on his coast, 
he discovered symptoms of timidity and embarrassment. In- 
stead of taking such resolutions, as the consciousness of his 
own power, or the memory of his former exploits might have 
inspired, he deliberated with an anxiety and hesitation, which 
did not escape the notice of his meanest courtiers. 

The perplexity and discomfitnre of Montezuma's mind, on 
this occasioD, were not owing wholly to the impression which 
the Spaniards had made by the novelty of their appearance 
and the terror of their arms. Its origin may be traced to a 
more remoie source. There was an opinion, if we believe 
the earliest and most authentic Spanish historians, almost 
universal amongst the Indian nations, that some dreadful 
calanjity was impending over their heads, from a race of for- 
midable invaders, who should come from regions towards the 
rising sun, to over-run and d#olate their country. Whether 
this disquieting apprehension flowed from ihe memory of 
some natural calamity which had afflicted that part of the 
globe, and impressed the minds of the inhabitants with super- 
stitious fears and forebodings; or whether it was an imagina- 
tion, accidentally suggested by the astonishment arising from 
the first sight of a new race of men, it is impossible to deter- 
mine : but, as the Mexicans were more superstitious than 
any other people in the new world, they were more deeply 
affected by the appearance of the Spaniards, whom their cre- 
dulity instantly represented as the instrument destined to 
produce the fatal revolution which they dreaded. Under 
these circumstances, it ceases to be incredible, that a hand- 
ful of adventurers, should alarm the monarch of a great em- 
pire, and all his subjects. 

It may afford some amusement to our readers, to narrate, 
in the simpl-^ language of an ancient Spanish historian, " those 
presages, and horrible and wonderful portents, which," it 
was at that time, believed, " God either oxdexed, ordained^ 



HISTORT OF SOUTH AMERICA. 1 1 g 

or permitted, to crush the spirits of those fierce people, and 
render the conquest less difficult to the Spaniards ; Provi- 
dence, by degrees, disposing all things towards it, by such 
unlikely means." — Those " horrible portents" bear a strong 
resemblance to the stories related by the celebrated Cotton 
Mather, of New England ; and it is not improbable, that the 
superstitious pages of De Solis have furnished materials, out 
of which were afterwards fabricated the terrible operations 
of the Salem Witches. 

" As soon as they had notice," relates De Solis, " of the 
Spaniards being in Mexico, when Juan de Grijalva arrived 
upon their coast the year before, several prodigies began to 
appear in this country, and very astonishing signs, which did 
in a manner assure Montezuma that the ruin of his empire 
drew near, and greatly terrified and discouraged both liim 
and his subjects. 

" A frightful comet appeared m.any nights, in shape lil^ a 
pyramid, which, beginning at midnight, advanced slov/ly to 
the highest parts of the heavens, where it vanished at the 
presence of the sun. Afterwards, at mid-day, another comet 
or exhalation, was seen to rise in the west, like a fiery ser- 
pent, with three heads, which ran swiftly, till it vaaished in 
ths east, scattering an infinite number of sparks, which died 
in the air. — The great lake of Mexico overflowed its banks, 
and, with an extraordinary impetuosity, drowned the coun- 
try, carrying away several houses, with a sort of waves that 
looked as if it had boiled up ; though there were no floods 
or stormy weather, to which they could attribute the motion 
of the waters. — One of their temples took fire of itself, with- 
out their being able to discover the cause of its burning, or 
the means to extinguish the flame. The very stones were 
seen to burn, and the whole pile was reduced to little more 
than ashes. — Lamentable voices were heard in the air, which 
foretold the end of that monarchy, and the same was repeat- 
ed in the answers of th^ir idols ; the devil pronouncing by 
them what he could conjecture of those natural causes which 
were in motion, or as much as he Vv^as permitted to know by 
the God of nature, who sometimes torments him by making 
him the instrument of truth. — Several monsters, of horrible 
deformity, and never seen before, were brought to the king ;: 
which, in his opinion, had a meaning, and denoted great 
misfortunes. If they vi^ere called monsters from demonstrat- 
ing, or foreshowing things to come, as v/as believed by th^ 
k2. 



114 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA, 

ancients, who gave them that name, it was not strange that 
they should be held for presages, amongst those barbarous 
people, whose ignorance and superstition went hand-in-hand." 

" Histories mention two very remarkable accidents, which 
extremely troubled the mind of Montezuma ; nor is it proper 
to omit them, since they found credit with Father Joseph de 
Acosta, Juan Botero, and other writers of judgment and au- 
thority : — 

" Certain fishermen near the lake of Mexico, caught a 
monstrous fov/1, of extraordinary make and greatness, and, 
accounting it a novelty, presented the same to the king. Its 
deformity was horrible, and on its head was a shining plate, 
like a looking-glass, from which the sun reflected a sort of 
dim and melancholy light. Montezuma observed it, and 
drawing near to take a better view, saw within it a represen- 
tation of the night, amidst whose obscurity were seen some 
parts of the heaven covered with stars, and so distinctly re- 
presented, that lie turned his eyes to the sun, as one doubt- 
ful of the day ; and, on fixing his eyes a second time upon 
that seeming glass, he spied, instead of night, what gave him 
greater astonishment ; for there appeared to his sight an 
army of men that came from the east, making a terrible 
slaughter of his subjects. He assembled the magicians and 
the priests, to consult about this prodigy, and the bird stood 
immovable, till many of them had tried the same experiment ; 
but then it flew away, and vanished in their presence, leaving 
them another presage in its astonishing flight, 

" A few days afterwards, a countryman came to the palace, 
a person reputed to be a plain downright man, who earnest- 
ly, and with mysterious instances, pressed to have an audi- 
ence of the king. After several consultations, he was 
introduced to his presence ; and, having made his obeisance, 
without any manner of disturbance or fear, he spoke to him 
in his rustic idiom, but with a kind of freedom and eloquence, 
which denoted a more than natural transport, or that the 
words were not his own, but were inspired, saying: 'Yes- 
terday, in the evening. Sir, being on my farm, employed in 
the improvement of my land, I saw an eagle, of extraordinary 
magnitude, which stooped down furiously upon me, and 
catching me between his claws, carried me a great way 
through the air, till he set me down near a spacious cave, in 
which was a man in royal robes, sleeping amongst a diversity 
of flowers and perfumes, with a scented composition burning 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 1X5 

in his hand. I drew somewhat nearer, and saw your like- 
ness, or perhaps it was yourself; for I cannot affirm it, though, 
in my opinion, I had my senses free. I was going to with- 
draw, being afraid and full of awe ; but an imperious voice 
stopped and frighted me anew, commanding me to take the 
burning perfume out of your hand, and apply it to some part 
of your leg that was uncovered. I refused, as much as I 
could, to commit such a piece of wickedness : but the same 
voice, in a terrible tone, forced me to obey ; upon which, 
Sir, being unable to resist, and emboldened by fear, I applied 
the burning composition to your thigh, and you endured the 
burning without waking, or making any motion. I should 
have thought that you were dead, but that your quiet breath- 
ing showed you to be alive, the repose expressing what was 
wanting in the senses. Then, the same voice — which seemed 
to be formed in the air — said to me : ' Thus, sleeps thy king, 
given up to his delights and vanities, when he has the anger 
of his gods upon him, and so many enemies, who come from 
the other part of the world, to destroy his monarchy and re- 
ligion. Bid him awake, and prevent, if he can, the miseries 
and calamities that threaten him !' — Scarcely had he pro- 
nounced these words, which I bear deeply imprinted on my 
memory, when the eagle took me up in his talons, and set 
me down on my farm, without the least hurt. — Thus, do I 
perform what the gods have enjoined me. Awake ! Sir, for 
your pride and your cruelty have provoked them ! I say, 
again, awake ! or take care how you sleep, since the burning 
sting of your conscience does not rouse you ; nor can you be 
noAV ignortht, that the cries of your people have reached 
Heaven, before they came to your ears !" 

Notwithstanding the influence of the impression made upon 
Montezuma's mind, by his superstitious fears, he did not 
yield implicit obedience to the spell by which he seemed 
enchained by fate. When his messenger arrived from the 
Spanish camp, with an account that the leader of the stran- 
gers, adhering to his original demand, refused to obey the 
order enjoining him to leave the country, he assumed some 
degree of resolution, and, in a transport of rage, threatened 
to sacrifice those presumptuous men to his gods. But his 
doubts and fears quickly returned ; and, instead of issuing 
orders to carry his threats into execution, he again called his 
ministers, to confer and offer their advice. 

Feeble and temporising measures will always be the result^ 



IIQ HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA- 

when men assemble to deliberate, in a situation where they 
ought to act. The Mexican counsellors took no effectual 
measure to expel the troublesome intruders, and were satis- 
fied with issuing a more positive injunction, requiring them 
to leave the country ; but this, they preposterously accompa-- 
nied with a present, so valuable as proved a fresh induce- 
ment to remain. 

Meanwhile, the Spaniaixls were not without solicitude, or 
a variety of sentiments, in deliberating concerning their own 
future conduct. From what they had already seen, many of 
them formed so extravagant ideas concerning the opulence 
of the country, that, despising danger or hardships, when 
they had in view treasures which appeared to be inexhausti- 
ble, they were eager to attempt the conquest. Others, esti- 
mating the power of the Mexican empire by its wealth, and 
enumerating the various proofs, which had occurred of its 
being under a well regulated administration, contended, that 
it would be an act of the wildest frenzy to attack such a state 
with a small body of men, in want of provisions, unconnected 
with any ally, and already enfeebled by the diseases peculiar 
to the climate, and the loss of several of their number. Cor- 
tes secretly applauded the advocates for bold measures, and 
cherished their romantic hopes, as such ideas corresponded 
with his own, and favoured the execution of his schemes^. 
From the time that the suspicions of Velasquez had broken 
out with open violence, in the attempts to deprive him of the 
command, Cortes saw the necessity of dissolving a connexion 
which would obstruct and embarrass all his operations, and 
watched for a proper opportunity of coming to a final rupture. 
Having this in view, he had laboured by every art to secure 
the esteem and affection of his soldiers. With his abilities 
for command, it was easy to gain their esteem ; and his fol- 
lowers were quickly satisfied that they might rely, with per- 
fect confidence, on the conduct and courage of their leader. 

During those intrigues, Teutile arrived with the present 
from Montezuma, and,, at the same time, delivered the ulti- 
mate order of that monarch, to deoart instantly out of his do- 
minions ; and when Cortes,, instead of complying, renewed 
his request of an audience,, the Mexican turned from him 
abruptly, and quitted the camp, with looks and gestures which, 
strongly expressed his surprise and resentment. Next morn- 
ing, none of the natives, who used to frequent the camp in 
great numbers, in order to barter with the soldiers, and to? 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 117 

bring in provisions, appeared. All friendly correspondence 
seemed now to be at an end, and it was expected every mo- 
ment that hostilities would commence. This, though an 
event that might have been foreseen, occasioned a sudden 
consternation amongst the Spaniards, which emboldened the 
adherents of Velasquez, not only to murmur and cabal against 
their general, but to appoint one of their number to remon- 
strate openly against his imprudence, in attempting the con- 
quest of a mighty empire v/ith so inadequate a force, and to 
urge the necessity of returning to Caba, in order to refit the 
fleet and augment the army. Diego de Ordaz, one of his 
principal officers, whom the malcontents charged with this 
commission, delivered it with a soldierly freedom and blunt- 
ness, assuring Cortes that he spoke the sentiments of the 
whole army. He listened to this remonstrance without any 
appearance of emotion ; and, as he well knew the temper and 
Welshes of his soldiers, and foresaw how they would receive a 
proposition, fatal at once to all the splendid hopes and schemes 
which they had been forming with such complacency, he car- 
ried his dissimulation so far, as to seem to relinquish his own 
measures in compliance with the request of Orvdaz, and issued 
orders that the army should be in readiness the next day to 
re-embark for Cuba. As soon as this was known, the disap- 
pointed adventurers exclaimed and threatened ; the emissaries 
of Cortes, mingling with them, inflamed their rage ; the fer- 
ment became general ; the whole camp was nearly in open 
mutiny, all demanding with eagerness to see their commander. 
Cortes was not slow in appearing; when, with one voice, of- 
ficers and soldiers expressed their astonishment and indigna- 
tion at the orders which they had received. It was unworthy, 
they cried, of the Castilian courage, to be daunted at the first 
aspect of danger, and infamous to fly before any enemy ap- 
peared. For their parts, they were determined not to relin- 
quish an enterprise, that had hitherto been successful, and 
which tended so visibly to spread the knovdedg^ of true re- 
ligion, and to advance the glory and interest of their country. 
Happy under his command, they would follow him with ala- 
crity through every danger, in quest of those settlements and 
treasures which he had so long held out to their view ; but, 
if he chose rather to return to Cuba, and tamely give up all 
his hopes of distinction and opulence to an envious rival, they 
would instantly choose another general, to conduct them iix 
that path of glory, which he had not spirit to enter. 



118 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

Delighted with their ardour, Cortes was not offended at the 
boldness with which it was uttered. The sentiments were 
what he himself had inspired, and the warmth of expression 
satisfied him that his followers had thoroughly imbibed them. 
He affected, however, to be surprised at what he heard, de- 
claring that his orders to prepare for embarking were issued 
from a persuasion that this was agreeable to his troops ; that, 
from deference to what he had been informed was their in- 
clination, he had sacrificed his own private opinion, which 
was firmly bent on establishing, immediately, a settlement 
on the sea-coast, and then on endeavouring to penetrate into 
the interior of the country ; that now he was convinced of 
his error; and, as he perceived that they were animated with 
the generous spirit which breathed in every true Spaniard, 
he would resume, with fresh ardour, his original plan of ope- 
ration, and doubted not to conduct them, in the career of 
victory, to fortunes as independent as were merited by their 
valour. Upon this declaration, shouts of applause testified 
the excess of their joy. The measure seemed to be taken 
with unanimous consent ; those who secretly condemned it 
being obliged to join in the acclamations, partly to conceal 
their disaffection from their general, and partly to avoid the 
imputation of cowardice frojin their fellow-soldiers. 

Without allowing his men time to cool or to reflect, Cortes 
began to carry his design into execution. In order to give a 
beginning to a colony, he assembled the principal persons in 
his army, and by their suffrage elected a council and magis- 
trates, in whom the government was to be vested. As men 
naturally transplant the institutions and forms of the mother 
country into their new settlements, this was framed upon the 
model of a Spanish corporation. The magistrates were dis- 
tinguished by the same names and ensigns of ofiice, and were 
to exercise a similar jurisdiction. All the persons chosen 
were most firmly devoted to Cortes, and the instrument of 
their election was framed in the king's name, without any 
mention of their dependence on Velasquez. The two prin- 
ciples, of avarice and enthusiasm, which prompted the Spa- 
niards to all their enterprises in the new world, seem to have 
concurred in suggesting the name which Cortes bestowed up- 
on his infant settlement. He called it, " Villa Rica de la 
Vera Cruz," — " The rich town of the True Cross." 

The first meeting of the new council was distinguished by 
a transaction of great moment. As soon as it assembled, 



lilSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. H^ 

Cortes applied for leave to enter ; and, approaching with many 
marks of profound respect, which added dignity to the tri- 
bunal, and set an example of reverence for its authority, he 
began a long harangue, in which, with much art, and in terms 
extremely flattering to the persons just entering upon their 
new function, he observed, that as the supreme jurisdiction 
over the colony which they had planted, was now vested in 
this court, he considered them as clothed with the authority 
and representing the person of their sovereign ; accordingly, 
that he would communicate to them what he deemed essen- 
tial to the public safety, with the same dutiful fidelity^as if 
he were addressing his royal master ; that the security of a 
colony settled in a great empire, the sovereign of which had 
already discovered his hostile intentions, depended on arms, 
and the efficacy of these upon the subordination and disci- 
pline preserved among the troops ; that his right to command 
was derived from a commission granted by the governor of 
Cuba ; and, as that had been long since revoked, the lawful* 
ness of his jurisdiction might well be questioned; that he 
might be thought to act upon a defective, or even a dubious 
title ,• nor could they trust an army which might dispute the 
powers of its general, at a juncture when it ought implicitly 
to obey his orders ; that, moved by these considerations, he 
now resigned all his authority to them, that they, having both 
right to choose, and power to confer full jurisdiction, might 
appoint one, in the king's name, to command the army in it3 
future operations ; and, as for his own part, such Was his zeal 
for the service in which they were engaged, that he would 
most cheerfully take up a pike with the same hand that laid 
down the general's truncheon, and convince his fellow-sol* 
diersi that, though accustomed to command, he had not for- 
gotten how to obey. Having finished his discourse, he laid 
the commission from Velasquez upon the tablcj and, after 
kissing his truncheon, delivered it to the chief magistrate, 
and withdrew. 

The deliberations of the council were not long, as Cortes 
had concerted this important measure with his confidants, and 
[lad prepared the other members with great address, for the 
part which he wished them to take. His resignation was ac- 
cepted ; and, as the uninterrupted tenor of their prosperity 
ander his conduct aflforded the most satisfying evidence of 
his abilities for command, by their unanimous suflrage, they 
sleeted him chief-justice of the colony, and captain-general 



120 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

of its army, and appointed his commission to be made out in 
the king's name, with most ample powers, which were to con- 
tinue in force until the royal pleasure should be farther 
known. That this deed might not be deemed the machina- 
tion of a junto, the council called together the troops, and 
acquainted them with what had been resolved. The soldieis, 
with eager applause, ratified the choice made by the council ; 
the air resounded with the name of Cortes, and all vowed to 
shed their blood in support of his authority. 

Having now brought his intrigues to the desired issue, and 
shaken off his mortifying dependence on the governor of 
Cuba, Cortes accepted the commission, which vested in him 
supreme jurisdiction, civil as well as military, over the colony, 
with many professions of respect to the council, and grati- 
tude to the army. Together with his new command, he as- 
sumed greater dignity, and began to exercise more extensive 
powers. Formerly, he had felt himself to be only the deputy 
of a subject ; now, he acted as the representative of his so^ 
vereign. The adherents of Velasquez, fully aware of what 
would be the effect of this change in the situation of Cortes, 
could no longer continue silent and passive spectators of his 
actions. They exclaimed openly against the proceeding^ of 
the council, as illegal, and against those of the army as mu- 
tinous. Cortes, instantly perceiving the necessity of giving 
a timely check to this seditious discourse, by some vigorous 
measure, arrested Ordaz, Escudero, and Velasquez de Leon, 
the ringleaders of this faction, and sent them prisoners on board 
the ffeet, loaded with chains. Their dependants, astonished 
and overawed, remained quiet ; and Cortes, more desirous to 
reclaim than to punish his prisoners, who were officers of great 
merit, courted their friendship with such assiduity and ad- 
dress, that the reconciliation was perfectly cordial ; and, on 
the most trying occasions, neither their connexion with the 
governor of Cuba, nor the memory of the indignity with 
which they had been treated, tempted them to swerve from 
an inviclabie attachment to his interest. In this, as well as 
his other negotiations at this critical conjuncture, which de- 
cided with respect to his future fame and fortune, Cortes 
owed much of his success to the Mexican gold, which he dis- 
tributed vt^ith a liberal hand, both amongst his friends and ', 
opponents. !r 

Having thus rendered the union between himself and his ' 
army indissoluble, by engaging it to join him in disclaiming. 



HISTORY OF SOUm AMERICA. 121 

any dependence on the governor of Cuba, and in repeated 
acts of disobedience to his authority, Cortes thought he might 
now venture to quit the camp in which he had hitherto re- 
mained, and advance into the country. To this, he was en- 
couraged by an event no less fortunate than seasonable; 
Some Indians, having approached his camp in a mysterious 
manner, were introduced into his presence. He found that 
they were sent with an offer of friendship from the cazique 
of Zempoala, a considerable town at no great distance ; and 
that, though subject to the Mexican empire, he was impatient 
of the yoke, and filled with such dread and hatred of Monte- 
zuma, that nothing could be more acceptablie to him than 
any prospect of deliverance from the oppression under which 
he groaned. ' On hearing this, a ray of light and hope broke 
in upon the mind of Cortes. He saw that the great empire, 
which he intended to attack, was neither perfectly united, nor 
its sovereign universally beloved. He concluded, that the 
causes of disaffection could not be confined to one province, 
but that in other corners there must be malcontents, so weary 
of subjection, or so desirous of change, as to be ready to fol- 
low the standard of any protector. Full of those ideas, on 
which he began to form a scheme, that time, and more per- 
fect information concerning the state of the country, enabled 
him to mature, he gave a most gracious reception to the Zem« 
poalans, and promised scon to visit their cacique* 

In order to perform this promise, it was not necessary to 
vary the route which he had already fixed for his march. 
Some officers, whom he had employed to survey the coast, 
having discovered a village, named Quiabislan, about forty 
miles to the northward, which, both on account of the fer» 
tility of the soil, and commodiousness of ttie harbour, seemed 
to be a more proper station for a settlement than that where 
he was encamped, Cortes determined to remove thither. 
Zempoala lay in his way, where the cazique received him 
in the manner which he had reason to expect ; with gifts and 
caresses, like a man solicitous to gain his good will ; with 
respect approaching almost to adoration, like one who looked 
up to him as a deliverer. From him, he learned many par* 
ticulars as to the character of Montezuma, and the circum- 
stances which rendered his dominion odious. He was a ty- 
rant, as the cazique told him with tears ; haughty, cruel, and 
suspicious; who treated his own subjects with arrogance, 
ruined the conquered provinces by excessive exactions, and 
L 



i22 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

often tore their sons and daughters from them by violence | 
the former, to be offered as victims to his gods ; the latter, to 
be reserved as concubines for himself or favourites. Cortes, 
in reply to him, artfully insinuated, that one great object of 
the Spaniards in visiting a country so remote from their own, 
was to redress grievances, and to relieve the oppressed ,• and, 
having encouraged him to hope for this interposition in due 
time, he continued his march to Quiabislan. 

The spot which his officers had recommended as a proper 
situation, appeared to him so well chosen, that he immedi- 
ately marked out ground for a town. The houses to be erect- 
ed were only huts ; but they were to be surrounded with for- 
tifications, of sufficient strength to resist the assaults of an 
Indian army. As the finishing of those fortifications, was es- 
sential to the existence of a colony, every man in the army, 
officers as well as soldiers, put his hand to the work, Cortes 
himself setting them an example of activity and perseverance 
in labour. iThe Indians of Zempoala and Quiabislan lent 
their aidj and this petty station, the parent of so many mighty 
Settlements, Was soon in a state of defence. 

While engaged in this necessary work, Cortes had several 
interviews with the caziques of Zempoala and Quiabislan ; 
and, availing himself of their wonder and astonishment at the 
new objects which they daily beheld, he gradually inspired 
them with so high an opinion of the Spaniards, as beings of 
a superior order, and irresistible in arms, that, relying on their 
protection, they ventured to insult the Mexican power, at the 
very name of which they had been accustomed to tremble. 
Some of Montezuma's officers having appeared to levy the 
usual tribute, and to demand a certain number of human vic- 
tims, as an expiation for their guilt in presuming to hold in- 
tercourse with those strangers whom the emperor had com- 
manded to leave his dominions, instead of obeying the order, 
the caziques made them prisoners, treated them with great 
indignity, and, as their superstition was no less barbarous 
than that of the Mexicans, they prepared to sacrifice them to 
their gods. From this last danger, they were delivered by 
the interposition of Cortes, who manifested the utmost horror 
at the mention of such a deed. The two caziques having 
now been impelled to an act of so open rebellion, as left them 
iio hope of safety but in attaching themselves inviolably to 
the Spaniards, they soon completed their union with them, 
by formally acknowledging themselves to be vassals of the 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA, 123 

same monarch. Their example was followed by the Toton^ 
aques, a fierce people who inhabited the mountainous part of 
the country : they willingly subjected themselves to the crown 
of Castile, and offered to accompany Cortes, with all their 
forces, in his march to Mexico. 

Cortes had now been above three months in New Spain ; 
and, though this period had not been distinguished by mar- 
tial exploits, every moment had been employed in operations, 
which, though less splendid, were more important. By his 
address in conducting his intrigues with his own army, as well 
as his sagacity in carrying on his negotiations with the na- 
tives, he had already laid the foundation of his future suc- 
cess. But, whatever confidence he might place in the plan 
which he had formed, he could not avoid perceiving, that, as 
all his title to command was derived from a doubtful au- 
thority, he held it by a precarious tenure. The injuries which 
Velasquez had received, were such as would naturally prompt 
him to apply for redress to their common sovereign ; and such 
a representation, he foresaw, might be given of his conduct, 
that he had reason to apprehend, not only that he might be 
degraded from his present rank, but subjected to punishment. 
Before he began his march, it was necessary to take the most 
effectual precautions against this impending danger. With 
this view, he persuaded the magistrates of th€ colony at Vera 
Cruz to address a letter to the king, the chief object of which 
was to justify their own conduct in establishing a colony in? 
dependent of the jurisdiction of Velasquez. They humbly 
requested their sovereign to ratify what they had done in his 
name, and to confirm Cortes in the supreme command by his 
royal commission. That Charles might be induced more 
readily to grant what they demanded, they gave him a pom- 
pous description of the country which they had discovered, 
and mentioned the schenies which they had formed, as well 
as the hopes which they entertained, of reducing the whole 
to subjection. Cortes hiniself wrote in a similar strain ; and, 
as he knew that the Spanish court, accustomed to the exag- 
gerated representations of every new country by its discoverr 
ers, would give little credit to their splendid accounts of New 
; Spain, if these were not accompanied with such a specimen 
of what it contained, as would excite a high idea of its opu- 
lence, he solicited his soldiers to relinquish what they might 
.claim as their part of the treasures which had hitherto been 
i collected, in order that the whole might be sent to the king, 



124 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

Portocarrero and Moiitejo, the chief magistrates of the coloy 
ny, Avere appointed to carry this present to Castile, with ex- 
press orders not to touch at Cuba in their passage thither. 

Meanwhile, a conspiracy, detected by Cortes, filled his 
mind with most disquieting apprehensions, and prompted him 
to execute a scheme which he had long revolved. He per- 
ceived that the spirit of disaffection still lurked amongst his 
troops ; that though hitherto checked by the uniform success 
of his schemes, or suppressed by the hand of authority, va- 
rious events might occur which would encourage and call it 
forth. He observed, that many of his men, weary of the fa- 
tigue of service,, longed to revisit their settlements in Cuba ; 
and that upon any appearance of extraordinary danger, or any 
reverse of fortune, it would be impossible to restrain them 
from returning. He was sensible that his forces, already too 
feeble, could bear no diminution, and that a very small de- 
fection of his followers would oblige him to abandon the en- 
terprise. After ruminating with much solicitude, upon tliose 
particulars, lie saw no hope of success, but in cutting off all 
possibility of retreat, and in reducing, his men to the neces- 
sity of adopting the same resolution with which he himself 
was animated, either to conquer or to perish. With this 
view, he determined to destroy his fleet ; but, as he durst not 
venture to execute so bold a resolution by his single authority, 
he laboured to bring his soldiers to adop^ his ideas with re- 
spect to the propriety of this measure. His address in ac- 
complishing this was not inferior to the arduous occasion in 
which it was employed. He persuaded some, that the ships 
had suffered sa much by having been long at sea, as to be al- 
together unfit for service ; to others, he pointed out wha;t 
seasonable reinforcement of strength they would derive from 
the junction of a hundred men, n.ow unprafitably employed 
as sailors ; and to all, he represented the necessity of fixing 
their eyes and wishes upon what was before them, without 
once admitting intOt their thoughts the idea of a retreat. With 
universal consent, the ships were drawn ashore, and, after 
stripping them of their sails, rigging, iron-works, and what- 
ever else might be of use, they were broken to pieces. 
" Thus," observes an admired historian,* to whose pages we 
are largely indebted for the account of the conquest of Mexi- 
co and, Peru,^ "from an effort of magnanimity, to which thei^e 

*. Dr. RiObertsppa 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 125 

is nothing parallel in history, five-hundred men voluntarily 
consented to be shut up in a hostile country, filled with pow- 
erful and unknown nations ; and, having precluded every 
means of escape, left themselves without any resource but 
their own valour and perseverance." 

But Justin relates of Agathocles, that, having landed his 
army on the coast of Africa, he burned his vessels, to deprive 
his soldiers of all means of flight. Polienus celebrates the 
memory of Timarchus, a general of the Etolians, for equal 
boldness ; and Quintus Fabius Maximus has left us, amongst 
his military remarks, another similar instance, if we can give 
more credit to the report of Frontinus, than to the silence 
of Plutarch. Yet, if we consider the act of Cortes, with 
fewer men than any of those commanders, in a more distant 
country, and less known ; without any hope of human succour, 
amongst a barbarous people, with a tyrant to oppose, so proud 
and powerful ; we shall find his undertaking the greatest, and 
his resolution the most heroic ; or, granting to those great 
captains the glory of having first led the way, let us allow 
Cortes that of having gone beyond them in their own track. 

Nothing now retarded Cortes : the alacrity of his troops, 
and the disposition of his allies were equally favourable. 
He began his march from Zempoala on the 16th of August^ 
with five-hundred men, fifteen horse, and six field-pieces. The 
rest of his troops, consisting chiefly of those who from age or 
infirmity were least fit for active service, he left as a garrison 
at Vera Cruz, under the command of Escalante, an officer of 
merit, and warmly attached to his interest. The cazique of 
Zempoala supplied him with provisions, and with two-hun- 
dred of those Indians called Tamemes, whose office, in a 
country where tame animals were unknown, was to carry bur- 
thens, and to perform all servile labour. They were a great 
relief to the Spanish soldiers, who hitherto had been obliged, 
not only to carry their own baggage, but to drag along the 
artillery by main force. He offered likewise a considerable 
body of his troops, but Cortes was satisfied with four-hun- 
dred ; taking care, however, to choose persons of such note 
as might prove hostages for the fidelity of their master. No- 
thing memorable happened in his progress, until he arrived 
on the confines of Tlascala. The inhabitants of that pro- 
vince, a warlike people, were implacable enemies of the 
Mexicans, and had been united in an ancient alliance with 
the caziques of Zempoala. Though less civilized than the 
l2 



12^ HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA, 

subjects of Montezuma, they were advanced in improvement 
far beyond the rude nations of America, whose manners we 
have described. They had made considerable progress in 
agriculture ; they dwelt in large towns ; they were not stran- 
gers to some species of commerce ; and in the imperfect ac- 
counts of their institutions and laws, transmitted to us by the 
early Spanish writers, we discern traces both of distributive 
justice and of criminal jurisdiction, in their interior police. 

Cortes, though he had received information concerning the 
martial character of this people, flattered himself that his 
professions of delivering the oppressed from the tyranny of 
Montezuma, their inveterate enmity to the Mexicans, and 
the example of their ancient allies, the Zempoalans, might 
induce the Tlascalans to grant him a friendly reception. In 
order to dispose them to this^ four Zempoalans of gyeat emi- 
nence were deputed as ambassadors, to request, in his name, 
and in that of the cazique, that they would permit the Spa- 
niards to pass through the territories of the republic in their 
way to Mexico. The four Zempoalans immediately adorned 
themselves after the manner of ambassadors^ They threw 
over their shoulders a mantle or tippet of cotton, wreathed, 
and knotted at the ends. In their right hand, they carried 
a large arrow, with the feathers on high, and in their left a 
target, made of a shell. The design of the embassy was in- 
dicated by the feathers of the arrow : — the red denoted war ; 
the white, peace ; after the same manner as the Homans dis- 
tinguished, by different symbols, the feciales and the cadu- 
ceatores. By these signs, they were known and respected in 
their marchess but they could not deviate from the high- 
roads of the province through which they were travelling ; 
for, if they were found in any other place, those privileges, 
held as sacred, were no longer to be extended to them. 

With those marks of their employment, the four envoys of 
Cortes entered Tlascala ,* and, being recognised in that cha- 
racter, they were lodged in the Calpisca— for so they called 
the house appropriated for the reception of ambassadors — 
and the day following the senate met, to give them audience, 
in a great hall, where they held their councils. The sena- 
tors were seated, according to their seniority, on low chairs, 
which they called yopales. When the ambassadors appeared, 
they raised themselves a little from their seats, and welcomed 
them with moderate courtesy. The former entered with 
their arrows raised on high, and the points on their heads ; a. 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 127 

mode, which, amongst their ceremonies, was accounted the 
most submissive. Having paid their respects to the senate, 
they walked leisurely to the middle of the hall, where they 
kneeled down, and, without raising their eyes, waited for 
leave to be given them to speak. The eldest senator ordered 
them to declare their business, and the ambassadors having 
seated themselves upon their own legs, one of them, who had 
been selected as the most proper person to make the speech, 
addressed the assembly, substantially as follows : — 

" Noble Republic, valiant and potent Tlascallans, — The 
Lord of Zempoala, and the mountain caziques, your friends 
and confederates, send you health ; and, wishing you abun- 
dant crops, and the death of your enemies,, they now inform . 
you, that certain invincible men are arrived amongst them^ 
from the east, who seem to be deities; for they sail on 
great palaces, and use thunder and lightning, the peculiar 
arms of heaven. They are servants of another God, superior 
to ours, who is offended with tyrannies and sacrifices of hu- 
man blood. Their captain is ambassador from a very power- 
ful prince, who, by the impulse of his religion,, desires ta 
reform the abuses of our country, and redress the violences 
of Montezuma ; and, having already rescued our provinces 
from the oppression under which they groaned, finds himself 
constrained to pass through your territories, in his way to 
Mexico ; and desires to know wherein that tyrant has offended 
you, that he may take your cause in hand, and add it to the 
rest which justify his undertaking. With this notice, then^ 
of their designs, and with experience of their benignity, we 
come before you, to request and admonish you, on the part 
of our caziques, and all their confederates^ that you would 
admit these strangers, as men desirous of doing good,^ and 
friends to your allies. On the part of their captain, we as- 
sure you, that he comes in a peaceable manner,, and only re- 
quests that you will grant him a free passage through your 
country, believing that he desires your v/elfare, and that his 
arms are the instruments of justice and reason, which defend 
the cause of Heaven ; in their own nature, good and mild, 
and hurtful only to the wicked, and where they are provoked." 

Having thus concluded, the four ambassadors raised them- 
selves upon their knees, and, making a profound reverence 
to the senate, they seated themselves as before, expecting a 
reply. The senators conferred a little amongst themselves ; 
imd one, in the name of all the rest, told them, that they ad^ 



128 fflSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

mitted the proposition of the Zempoalans and Totanaques, 
their confederates, with all imaginable gratitude ; but that 
the answer which they were to give to the captain of the 
strangers, required further deliberation. 

The ambassadors then retired to their lodging ; and the 
senate " deliberated with closed doors," in relation to the 
difficulties or conveniences of the proposal. A long debate 
ensued, and the question was at length decided. But, in- 
stead of the favourable answer which was expected, the Tlas- 
calans detained the ambassadors, in a kind of virtual impri- 
sonment, and; without offering them their " passports," they 
assembled their troops, in order to oppose the unknown in- 
. vaders, if they attempted to effect their passage by force of 
arms. 

Various motives concurred in precipitating the Tlascalans 
into this resolution. A fierce nation, shut up within its own 
narrow precincts, and little accustomed to any intercourse 
with foreigners, is apt to consider every stranger as an ene- 
my, and, is easily excited to arms. They concluded, from 
Cortes's proposal of visiting Montezuma in his capital, that, 
notwithstanding all his professions, he courted the friendship 
of a monarch whom they both hated and feared. The impru- 
dent zeal of Cortes in violating the temples in Zempoala, 
filled the Tlascalans with horror ; and, as they were no less 
attached to their superstition than the other nations of New 
Spain, they were impatient to avenge their injured gods, and 
to acquire the merit of offering up to them, as victims, those 
impious men who had dared to profane their altars ; they con- 
temned the small number of the Spaniards, as they had not 
yet measured their own strength with that of these new ene- 
mies, and had no idea of the superiority which they derived 
from their arms and discipline. 

After waiting some days, in vain, for the return of his am- 
bassadors, Cortes advanced into the Tlascalan territories, on 
the thirtieth of August. As the resolutions of a people who 
delight in war are executed with no less promptitude than 
they are formed, he found troops in the field, ready to oppose 
him. They attacked him with great intrepidity ; and, in the 
first encounter, wounded some of the Spaniards, and killed 
two horses ,* a loss, in their situation, of great moment, be- 
cause it was irreparable. From this specimen of their cou- 
rage, Cortes saw the necessity of proceeding with caution. 
His army marched in close order; he chose the stations 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 129 

where he halted, with attention, and fortified every camp with 
extraordinary care. During fourteen days, he was exposed 
to almost uninterrupted assaults : the Tlascalans advancing- 
with numerous armies, and renewing the attack in various 
forms, with a degree of valour and perseverance to which the 
Spaniards had seen nothing parallel in the new world. 

But their superiority in number was of little avail, and the 
imperfection of their military weapons rendered their valour 
in a great measure inoffensive. After three battles, and 
many skirmishes and assaults, not one Spaniard was killed in 
the field. Arrows and spears, headed with flint or the bones 
of fishes, stakes hardened in the fire, and wooden swords, 
though destructive weapons amongst naked Indians, were 
easily turned aside by the Spanish bucklers, and could hardly 
penetrate the quilted jackets which the soldiers wore. 

Notwithstanding the fury with which the TIa&ealans at- 
tacked the .Spaniards, they seem to have conducted their 
hostilities with some degree of barbarous generosity. They 
gave the Spaniards warning of their hostile intentions, and, as 
they know that their invaders wanted provisions, and imagin- 
ed, parhrps, like the other Indians, that they had left their 
own country because it did not aflTord them subsistence, they 
sent to their camp a large supply of poultry and maize, de-. 
siring them to eat plentifully, because they scorned to at- 
tack an enemy enfeebled by hunger, and it would be an 
affront to their gods to offer them famished victims, as well 
as disagreeable to themselves to feed on so emaciated prey.. 

When they were taught by the first encounter with their 
new enemies, that it was not easy to execute this threat ; 
when they perceived, in the subsequent engagements, that, 
notwithstanding all the efforts of their own valour, of which 
they had a very high opinion, not one of the Spaniards was 
slain or taken, they began to conceive them to be a superior 
order of beings, against whom human power could not avail. 
In this extremity, they had recourse to their priests, requir- 
ing them to reveal the mysterious causes of so extraordinary 
events, and to declare what new means they should employ, 
in order to repulse those formidable invaders. The priests, 
after many sacrifices and incantatiops, delivered this re- 
sponse : " That these strangers were the offspring of the sun, 
procreated by his animating energy in the regions of the 
east ; that, by day, while cherished by the influence of his 
parental beams, they were invincible ; but by night, when hi§ 



1 30 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

reviving heat was withdrawn, their vigour declined and faded 
like the herbs in the field, and they dwindled down into 
mortal men." — Theories less plausible have gained credit 
with more enlightened nations. In consequence of this, the 
Tlascalans, with the implicit confidence of men who fancy 
themselves to be under the guidance of Heaven, acted in 
contradiction to one of their most established maxims in war, 
and ventured to attack the enemy, with a strong body, in the 
night-time, in the hope of destroying them when enfeebled 
and surprised. But Cortes had greater vigilance and discern- 
ment, than to be deceived by the rude stratagems of an In- 
dian army. The sentinels at his out-posts, observing some 
extraordinary movement among the Tlascalans, gave the 
alarm. In a moment, the troops were under arms, and sally- 
ing out, dispersed the party, with great slaughter, without 
allowing it to approach the camp. The Tlascalans, convinced, 
by sad experience, that their priests had deluded them, sacri- 
ficed two or three of them in one of their temples ; and, satis- 
fied that they attempted in vain, either to deceive, or to van- 
quish their enemies, their fierceness abated, and they began 
to incline seriously to peace. 

The peace which both parties now desired with equal ar- 
dour, was soon concluded. The Tlascalans yielded them- 
selves as vassals to the crown of Castile, and engaged to assist 
Cortes in all his future operations. He took the republic 
under his protection, and promised to defend their persons 
and possessions from injury or violence. 

This treaty was concluded at a seasonable juncture for the 
Spaniards. The fatigue of service amongst a small body of 
men, surrounded by so great a multitude of enemies, was 
incredible. Half the army was on duty every night, and 
even the soldiers whose turn it was to rest, slept always on 
their arms, that they might be ready to run to their posts at 
a moment's warning. Many of them were wounded ; a good 
number, and amongst these Cortes himself, laboured under 
the distempers prevalent in hot climates ; and several had 
died since they had set out from Vera Cruz. 

The submission of the Tlascalans, and their own trium- 
phant entry into the capital city, where they were received 
with the reverence paid to beings of a superior order, banished, 
at once, from the minds of the Spaniards, all memory of past 
sufferings, dispelled every anxious thought with respect to 
their future operations, and fully satisfied them that there 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMEHlCA. 131 

was not now any power in America able to withstand their 
arms. 

Tlascala was in those days a very populous city, built upon 
four hills, of unequal elevations, little distant from each other, 
extending from east to west. Secure in the natural strength 
of their rocks, they contained within them all the buildings, 
forming four commands, or distinct wards, which were united 
and communicated by several streets with very thick walls, 
that served as a defence to the town. Each ward was go- 
verned by a cazique. This houses were raised moderately 
high, for they had no second story. They were built of stone, 
or brick, and, instead of sloping roofs, of tiles, such as were 
then usual in Spain, they had flat tops and galleries, after the 
manner of the east. 

The whole province was about thirty leagues in circumfe- 
rence ; a broken, mountainous country, but well cultivated in 
all parts, where the existence of streams enabled the inhabi- 
tants to improve the land. The towns were many, and near to 
each other : the people, from their childhood, were inclined to 
superstition and the use of arms. They had an abundance of 
maize, or Indian corn ; and this grain so well rewarded the la- 
bour of the husbandman, that it gave the whole province the 
name of Tlascala, or the Land of Bread. They had a great va- 
riety of fruit ; and also of game ,* and one of their natural pro- 
ductions was the cochineal, a kind of insect, like a small worm, 
which is generated on the leaves of a wild thorny tree, and 
extremely valuable as a scarlet dye ; but its use was unknown 
to the Indians, until they were taught it by the Spaniards. 

Cortes remained twenty days in Tlascala, in order to allow 
his troops a short interval of repose, after so hard service. 
During that time, he was employed in transactions and in- 
quiries of great moment with respect to his future schemes. 
In his daily conferences with the Tlascalan chiefs, he re- 
ceived information concerning every particular relative to 
the state of the Mexican empire, or the qualities of its sove- 
reign, which could be of use in regulating his conduct, 
whether he should be obliged to act as a friend or as an ene- 
my. As he found that the antipathy of his new allies to the 
Mexican nation, was no less implacable than had been repre- 
sented, and perceived how much benefit he might derive 
from the aid of confederates so powerful, he employed all the 
arts of insinuation, in order to gain their confidence. Nor 
was any extraordinary exertion of these required* With a 



132 HISTt)kY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

levity of mind, natural to unpolished men, they were, of their 
own accord, disposed to run from the extreme of hatred, to 
that of fondness. Every thing in the appearance and con- 
duct of their guests, was to them matter of wonder. The 
horses were objects of the greatest astonishment, to all the 
people of New Spain. At first, they imagined the horse and 
his rider, like the centaurs of the ancients, to be some mon- 
strous animal of a terrible form ; and, supposing that their 
food was the same as that of men, they brought flesh and 
bread, to nourish them. Even after they had discovered 
their mistake, they believed that the horses devoured men in 
battle^ and when they neighed, thought they were demand* 
ing their prey. The Tlascalans gazed with admiration at 
every movement of the Spaniards ; and, fancying them to be of 
heavenly origin, were eager not only to comply with their 
demands, but to anticipate their wishes. They at length 
ofiered to accompany Cortes in his march to Mexico, with all 
the forces of the republic, under the command of their m.ost 
experienced captains. 

But, after devoting so much pains to the cementing of this 
union, all the beneficial fruits of it were on the point of being 
lost, by a new effusion of that intemperate religious zeal, 
with which Cortes was animated, no less than the other ad- 
venturers of the age. They all considered themselves as in- 
struments employed by heaven to propagate the Christian 
faith ; and the less they were qualified, either by their know- 
ledge or morals, for such a function, they were the more eager 
to discharge it. The profound veneration of the Tlascalans for 
the Spaniards, having encouraged Cortes to explain to some 
of their chiefs the doctrines of the Christian religion, and to 
insist that they should abandon their own superstitions, and em- 
brace the faith of their new friends, they, according to an idea 
universal amongst barbarous nations, readily acknowledged 
the truth and excellence of what he taught ; but contended, 
that the Teules of Tlascala were divinities, no less than the 
God in whom the Spaniards believed ; and, as that Being was 
entitled to the homage of Europeans, so they were bound to 
revere the same powers which had been worshiped by their 
ancestors. Cortes continued, nevertheless, to urge his de- 
mand in a tone of authority, mingling threats with his argu* ' 
ments, until the Tlascalans could bear it no longer, and 
conjured him never to mention this again, lest the gods should 
avenge on their heads the guilt of having listened to such a 



HISTORY OF SOUITH AMERICA. 133 

j^#0position. Cortes, astonished and enraged at their obsti>- 
nacy, prepared to execute by force, what he could not accom- 
plish by persuasion, and was going to overturn their altars, 
and cast down their idols with the same violent hand as at 
Zempoala, if father Bartholomew de Olmedo, chaplain to the 
expedition, had not checked his inconsiderate impetuosity. 
He represented the imprudence of such an attempt, in a large 
city, newly reconciled, and filled with people no less super- 
stitious than warlike ; he declared that the proceeding at Zem- 
poala had always appeared to him precipitate and unjust; 
that religion was not to be propagated by the sword, or infi- 
dels to be converted by violence; that other weapons were 
to be employed in this ministry :— patient instruction must 
enlighten the understanding, and pious example captivate 
the heart, before men could be induced to abandon erroa", and 
embrace the truth. The remonstrances of an ecclesiastic, no 
less respectable for wisdom than virtue, had their proper 
weight with Cortes. He left the Tlascalans in the undis- 
turbed exercise of their own rites, requiring only that they 
should desist from their horrid practice of offering human 
victims in sacrifice. 

As soon as his troops Were fit for service, Cortes resolved 
to continue his march to Mexico, notwithstanding the earnest 
dissuasives of the Tlascalans, who represented his destruction 
as unavoidable, if he put himself in the power of a prince so 
faithless and cruel as Montezuma. As he was accompanied 
by six-thousand Tlascalans, he had now the command of forces 
ivhich resembled a regular army. They directed their course 
f\ f ^o towards Cholula; Montezuma, who had at length 
consented to admit the Spaniards into his presence, 
biaving informed Cortes, that he had given orders for his 
friendly reception there. Cholula was a considerable towUj 
md, though only five leagues distant from Tlascala, was for- 
merly an independent state, but had been lately subjected to 
the Mexican empire. This was considered by the people of 
New Spain as a holy place, the sanctuary and chief seat of 
Lheir gods, to which pilgrims resorted from every province, 
md a greater number of human victims were offered in its 
principal temple, than even in that of Mexico. Montezuma 
seems to have invited the Spaniards thither, either from some 
superstitious hope that the gods would not suffer this sacred 
mansion to be defiled, without pouring down their wrath upon 
those impious strangers, who ventured to insult their power 
. M 



134 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 



" 



in the place of its peculiar residence ; or from a belief that 
he himself might there attempt to cut them off with more 
certain success, under the immediate protection of his divi- 
nities. 

Cortes had been warned by the Tlascalans, before he set 
out on his march, to keep a watchful eye over the Cholulans. 
He himself, though received into the town with much seem- 
ing respect and cordiality, observed several circumstances in 
their conduct which excited suspicion. Two of the Tlasca- 
lans, who were encamped at some distance from the town, as 
the Cholulans refused to admit their ancient enemies within 
its precincts, having found means to enter in disguise, ac- 
quainted Cortes, that they observed the women and children 
of the principal citizens retiring in great hurry every night ; 
and that ten children had been sacrificed in the chief tem- 
ple ; a rite which indicated the execution of some warlike 
enterprise to be approaching. At the same time, Marina the 
interpreter, received information from an Indian woman of 
distinction, that the destruction of her friends was concert- 
ed; that a body of Mexican troops lay concealed near the 
town ; that some of the streets were barricaded, and in others, 
pits or deep trenches were dug, and slightly covered, as traps 
into which the horses might fall ; that stones or missive wea- 
pons were collected on the tops of the temples, with which 
to overwhelm the infantry ; that the fatal hour was now at 
hand, and their ruin unavoidable. Alarmed at this concur- 
ring evidence, Cortes secretly arrested three of the chief 
priests, and extorted from them a confession, that confirmed 
the intelligence which he had received. As not a moment 
WSLS to be lost, he instantly resolved to anticipate his enemies, 
and to inflict upon them so dreadful vengeance, as might 
strike Montezuma and his subjects with terror. For this pur- 
pose, the Spaniards and Zempoalans were drawn up in a large 
court, which had been allotted for their quarters, near the 
centre of the town ; the Tlascalans had orders to advance ; 
the magistrates, and several of the chief citizens were sent 
for, under various pretexts, and seized. On a signal given, 
the troops rushed out, and fell upon the multitude, destitute 
of leaders, and so much astonished, that the weapons drop- 
piDg from their hands, they stood motionless, and incapable 
of defence. While the Spaniards pressed them in front, the 
Tlascalans attacked them in the rear. The streets were filled 
"Vfith bloodshed and death. The temples which afforded a 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. I35 

retreat to the priests and some of the leading men, were set 
on fire, and they perished in the flames. This scene of hor- 
ror continued two days, during which, the wretched inhabi- 
tants suffered all that the destructive rage of the Spaniards^ 
or the implacable revenge of their Indian allies, could inflict. 
At length, the carnage ceased, after the slaughter of six- 
thousand Cholu-lans, without the loss of a single Spaniard. 
Cortes then released the magistrates, and, reproaching them 
bitterly for their intended treachery, declared, that as justice 
was now appeased, he forgave the offence, but required them 
to recall the citizens who had fled, and re-establish order in 
the town. 

Q f 2Q From Cholula, Cortes advanced directly towards 
Mexico, which was only twenty leagues distant. In 
every place through which he passed, he v/as received as a 
person possessed of sufl[icient power to deliver the empire 
from the oppression under which it groaned ; and the caziques 
or governors communicated to him all the grievances which 
they felt under the tyrannical government of Montezuma, 
with that unreserved confidence which men naturally repose 
in superior beings. 

They had approached within view of Mexico, and had met 
no enemy to oppose their progress, though several circum- 
stances occurred, which led them to suspect that some design 
was formed to surprise and cut them off. Many messengers 
arrived successively from Montezuma, permitting them one 
day to advance, requiring them on the next to retire, as his 
hopes or fears alternately prevailed ; and, so wonderful was 
this infatuation, that Cortes was almost at the gates of the 
capital, before the monarch had determined whether to re- 
ceive him as a friend, or to oppose him as an enemy. But, 
as no sign of open hostility appeared, the Spaniards, without 
regarding the fluctuations of Montezuma's sentiments, con- 
tinued their march along the causeway which led to Mexico 
through the lake, with great circumspection and the strictest 
discipline, though without seeming to suspect the prince 
whom they were about to visit. 

Nov. 8. "^^hen they drew near the city, about a thousand 
' persons, who appeared to be of distinction, came 
forth to meet them, adorned with plumes, and clad in mantles 
of fine cotton. Each of these,, in his order, passed by Cor- 
tes, and saluted him according to the mode deemed most re- 
spectful and submissive in their ecvijntry. They announced 



136 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA, 

the approach of Montezuma himself, and soon after his har- 
bingers came in sight. There appeared first two-hundred 
persons in a uniform dress, with large plumes of feathers, 
alike in fashion, marching two and two, in deep silence, bare- 
footed, with their eyes fixed on the ground. These were fol- 
lowed by a company of higher rank, in their most showy ap- 
parel, in the midst of whom Avas Montezuma, in a chair or 
litter richly ornamented with gold, and feathers of various 
colours. Four of his principal favourites carried him on their 
shoulders ; others supported a canopy of curious workmanship 
over his head. Before him, marched three officers, with rods 
of gold in their hand, which they lifted up on high at certain 
intervals, and at that signal all the people bowed their heads, 
and hid their faces, as unworthy to look upon so great a mon- 
arch. When he drew near, Cortes dismounted, advancing 
towards him with officious haste, and in a respectful posture. 
At the same time, Montezuma alighted from his chair, and, 
leaning on the arms of two of his near relations, approached 
with a slow and stately pace, his attendants covering the 
street with cotton cloths, that he might not touch the ground, 
which, in their opinion, was unworthy of the honour. He 
was a handsome man^ about forty years of age, of a middle 
stature, and of a frame rather delicate than strong ; his nose 
was aquiline, and his complexion fairer than is general with 
the Indians : his hair reached a little below his ears ; his eyes 
were lively, his look majestic and thoughtful. He wore a 
mantle of the finest cotton, tied carelessly on his shoulders, 
covering the greater part of his body, with the end trailing 
on the ground, ornamented with jewels of gold, pearls, and 
precious stones, in so great number, that they seemed rather 
to oppress than adorn him. His crown was a light mitre of 
gold, ending in a point before : on his feet, he wore shoes of 
hammered gold, the straps of which, studded with the same 
kind of metal, bound them to his feet, and embraced part of 
his leg, like the Roman military sandals. 

Cortes accosted Mojitezuma with profound reverence, after 
the European fashion. He returned the salutation, accord- 
ing to the mode of his country, by touching the earth with 
his hand, and then kissing it. This ceremony, the customary 
expression of veneration from inferiors towards those who 
were above them in rank, appeared so amazing condescen- 
sion in a proud monarch, who scarcely deigned to consider 
the rest of mankind as of the same species with himself^ tha^t I 



mSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 137 

all his subjects firmly believed those persons, before whom 
he humbled himself in this manner, to be something more 
than human. Accordingly, they marched through the crowd, 
the Spaniards frequently, and with much satisfaction, heard 
themselves denominated Teules, or divinities. Nothing ma- 
terial passed in this first interview. Montezuma conducted 
Cortes to the quarters which he had prepared for his recep- 
tion, and immediately took leave of him. v/ith a politeness not 
unworthy of a court more refined. — " You are now," says he, 
" with your brothers in your own house ; refresh yourselves 
after your fatigue, and be happy until I return." 

The place allotted to the Spaniards for their lo<lging, was-^ 
a house built by the father of Montezuma. It was surround- 
ed by a stone wall, with towers at proper distances, which 
served for defence, as well as ornament, and its apartments^ 
and courts were so large, as to accommodate both the Spa- 
niards and their Indian allies. Some chambers, designed for 
the superior officers, were furnished with cotton hangings of 
various colours, and the bedsteads had curtains of the sam.e 
material, like pavilions. 

It was a little past noon, when the Spaniards entered their 
spacious barrack, where there was prepared a splendid ban- 
quet for Cortes and the officers of his army, and great abun- 
dance of provisions, less delicate, for the private soldiers, 
with many Indian attendants, who. served them with the re- 
freshments, in profound silence and exact order. 

In the evening, Montezuma returned to visit his guests, 
with the same pomp as at their first interview, bringing pre- 
sents of so great value, not only to Cortes and his officers, 
but even to the private men, as proved the liberality of the 
monarch to be equal to the opulence of his kingdom. A 
long conference ensued, in which Cortes learned the opinion 
conceived by Montezuma, in respect to the Spaniards. The 
historians of that period report, that Montezuma having 
taken his seat with an air of negligence and majesty, and 
commanded a chair to be brought for Cortes, addressed him, 
. through the medium of an interpreter, in the following man- 
, ner : — 

" Illustrious captain, and valiant stranger, — before you de- 
( liver the embassy of the great prince who sent you, you and 
,1 must pass over, and bury in oblivion, what fame has pub- 
' lished of our persons and conduct ; abusing our ears with; 
I m; 21 



ISg HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

idle rumours, which prepossess us against truth, and render 
it obscure by the impressions of flattery or reproach. In 
some places, you have been informed, that I am one of the 
immortal gods ; that my power and my person are exalted to 
the heavens. In others, you have been told, that the busi- 
ness of fortune is to enrich me ; that the walls and coverings 
of my palace are of gold, and that the earth groans beneath 
the weight of my treasure : you have heard that I am a ty- 
rant, cruel and proud ; abhorring justice, and a stranger to 
mercy ; but, as regards both the one and the other of these 
characters, you have been imposed upon by exaggerations. 
That you may not imagine me a god, but be sensible of the 
folly of those who suppose me to be one, this part of my body, 
said he, uncovering his arm, will undeceive you, and provejw] 
that you talk to a mortal, of the same species with the res3H 
of men; but more noble and more powerful. My riches, I 
deny not, are great ; but the representation of my vassals, 
makes them much greater than they are. This house, in 
which you lodge, is one of my palaces : behold the walls, 
made of stone and lime, ordinary materials, which owe their 
value to art : — now, from both these accounts, you may ima- 
gine how likely it is that my tyrannies have been magnified, 
in the same proportion. Suspend your judgment, at least, 
till you enter into my reasons ; and lay no stress upon the 
accusations brought against me by my rebellious subjects., 
until you have first informed yourself, whether that which 
they call oppression be not chastisement ; and w^hether they 
censure my severity without my having deserved it. 

" After the same manner, have we received information 
of your own nature and actions. Some have told me that 
you are gods ; that the wild beasts obey you, that you grasp 
in your hand the thunder, and command the elements. Others 
have reported, that you are wicked, revengeful, proud ; slaves 
to your vices, and insatiably thirsting for our country's gold. 
But now I see you are of the same composition and form, as 
the rest of men ; though you are distinguished from us by 
some accidents, which the difference of climate occasions 
amongst mortals. These beasts which obey you, I find are 
large deer, which you have tamed, and bred in so imperfect j 
a degree of knowledge, as may be acquired by animal instinct. \ 
Your arms, which resemble lightning, I conceive to be tubes 
of unknown metal ; the effect of which, like that of our sar- 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. im 

bacansj* proceeds from air compressed, which strives for a 
vent, and forces its way through all impediments. The fire 
which your tubes discharge with greater noise, is some super- 
natural secret of that science which is understood by our ma- 
gicians. 

" We must, on both sides, forget all past informations, and 
be thankful to our eyes, for undeceiving our imaginations. I 
would have you to understand, before you begin your dis- 
course, that we readily believe that the great prince whom 
you obey, is descended from our ancient Quezalcoal, Lord of 
the Seven Caves of the Navatlaques, and lawful king of those 
seven nations which gave beginning to the Mexican empire. 
By one of his prophecies, which we reverence as infallible 
truth, and by-a tradition of many ages, preserved in our an- 
nals, we know, that he departed from these countries to con- 
quer new regions in the east ; leaving a promise, that, in the 
course of time, his descendants v/ould return, to re-model our 
laws, and amend our government ; and, because the marks 
which you carry agree with the prophecy, and the prince of 
the east who sends you, manifests, in your actions, the great- 
ness of so illustrious a progenitor, we have already deter- 
mined, that all things shall be done, to the utmost of our 
ability, for his honour ,• of which, I have thought fit to inform 
you, that, without any constraint, you may declare what you 
have to propose, and attribute to so noble a cause, this ex- 
cess of my condescension." 

Cortes made a reply in his usual style, with respect to the 
dignity and power of his sovereign, and his intention in send- 
ing him into that country ; artfully endeavouring so to frame 
his discourse, that it might coincide as much as possible with 
the idea formed by Montezuma concerning the origin of the 
Spaniards. Next morning, Cortes and some of his principal 
: attendants were admitted to a public audience of the empe- 
1 ror. The three subsequent days were employed in viewing 
I the city ; the appearance of which, so far superior, in the or- 
\ der of its inhabitants, to any place that the Spaniards had 
beheld in America, and yet so little resembling the structure 
of a European city, filled them with surprise and admiration. 
As Montezuma had indulged Cortes and his principal officers 

* The sarbacan was a long tube, formed of cane ; from which, the Mexi- 
cans discharged an arrow, with considerable force, by blowing into it, in the 
wanner practised by little boys in the United States, when shooting at birds. 



140 mSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

with a view of his court, he resolved, through the influence- 
of vanity, to show them the greater magnificence of his tem- 
ples. He commanded them to stop a short time at the en- 
trance, and went forward himself, to consult the priests, whe- 
ther it were lawful for him to bring into the presence of his 
gods, those who refused to adore them. It was concluded 
that they might enter ; but that Montezuma should first ad- 
monish them to conduct themselves with respect. Imme- 
diately, all the gates of the most spacious edifice were opened ; 
and Montezuma took upon himself to explain all the secret 
places of worship, the use of the vessels, and other instru- 
ments and images of the temple, with so much ceremony and 
reverence, that the Spaniards very indecorously burst into 
laughter, which he did not seem ta notice, though he turned 
and looked upon them, as desiring to keep them within bounds. 
Here, Cortes, suffering himself to be transported with the 
zeal excited by his own peculiar religion, addressed himself 
to Montezuma, and said, " Permit me, sir, to fix the cross be= 
fore these images of the devil, and you shall see whether they 
deserve adoration or contempt." — On hearing this proposi- 
tion, the priests became enraged, and Montezuma found 
himself in the greatest confusion and perplexity ; wanting 
patience to conceal, and resolution to make known his dis- 
pleasure. But, endeavouring to smother his resentment, 
*' You might, at least," said he to the Spaniards, " have shown 
to this place, the respect you owe to my person." Having 
thus spoken, he went out of the temple, that they might do' 
the same, but stopped on the threshold, and added, with ra- 
ther more calmness, " You may return to your house, my 
friends, for I shall remain here, to ask pardon of my gods^^ 
for having suffered you to proceed thus far." 

From this experiment, and others of the same kind, Cor- 
tes, with the advice of two Spanish ecclesiastics, resolved not 
to talk any more, at that period, on the subject of religion, 
which seemed only to provoke and harden the heart of Mon- 
tezuma ; but, at the same time, the Spaniards obtained leave 
to worship God in public, and he himself sent his master- 
builders to erect a chapel, at his own expense, according to 
the direction of Cortes. The Spaniards immediately pre- 
pared one of the principal rooms of the palace. " They 
white-washed it, and raised an Litar ; and, in the front, upon 
steps richly adorned," relates the historian, De Solis, " they 
placed the inmge of our Lady, and, fixing a large cross near 



fflSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 14X 

the gate, formed a very decent chapel, where every day they 
celebrated mass, and recited their rosary, with other acts of 
piety and devotion ; Montezuma with his princes and minis- 
ters being often present, admiring the solemnity of the Chris- 
tian service." 

Besides the principal palace, in which Montezuma held 
his court, he had several houses of pleasure, which adorned 
the city, and displayed his grandeur. He had aviaries, in 
which were kept an immense variety of birds, — ^fowls of the 
sea, swimming in pools of salt water, and fowls of the lakes 
and rivers, sporting in pools of fresh ; — birds of the air, of 
most beautiful colours; some prized for the splendour of their 
plumage; others for the sweetness of their song; besides 
birds of prey, such as eagles and condors, and hawks, trained 
like those of Europe, for the field. Nor were there wanting 
a menagerie of wild-beasts ; and dens, in which were daily 
fed multitudes of hideous and venomous animals, such as 
rattle-snakes, alligators, and scorpions. 

Over the place where the beasts were kept, was a very 
large apartment for the residence of buffoons, who served for 
the diversion of the king. 

Montezuma had generally attending at his table three or 
four select buffoons, who were the most remarkable for their 
pranks. After some interval of repose, his musicians usually- 
made their appearance, and, with a sort of flutes and sea- 
shells, notwithstanding the discordance of their sounds, they 
formed a kind of concert. They sung several compositions, 
in various sorts of metre ; which, though unequal in their 
measure, had something resembling a cadence, varying the 
tones, not without some method, into music adapted to their 
ear. The ordinary themes of their songs, were the exploits 
of their ancestors, and the memorable actions of their kings : 
these were sung in their temples, and the children committed 
them to memory, to preserve the achievements of the nation 
from oblivion ; these songs serving as a history, to those who 
did not understand the pictures and hieroglyphics of their 
annals. They had also their merry songs, used in dances, 
and accompanied by a singular, confused kind of music. 
They were so much addicted to this sort of diversion, as well 
as to other spectacles and entertainments, that almost every 
night they had public festivals in some quarter of the city ; 
and they were now more frequent, and celebrated with greater 
golemnity, in compliment to the Spaniards ; Montezuma hin\. 



142 fflSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

self not only encouraging, but assisting at them in person, 
contrary to his accustomed austerity, that these idle diver- 
sions, amongst the rest of his ostentation, should contribute 
to display his grandeur, and the magnificence of his court. 

The people frequently assembled in the principal squares, 
or in the porches of the temples, to enjoy the diversion of 
shows and games. Parties were matched against each other, 
to shoot at a mark, or give other proofs of their dexterity, in 
managing the bow and arrow. They ran races, and wrestled 
for wagers ; and the victors were likewise honoured by a pub- 
lic reward, as was the custom, on similar occasions, in an- 
cient Greece. Some of the aspirants were extremely active, 
and, like the unrivalled Cline, of the present day, could dance 
on a rope without a pole ; and some could dance, " after a 
most amazing manner," with another of those rope-dancers 
on their shoulders.— They played likewise at ball, with a 
kind of " bandy," something in the manner of the sport 
called " shinny," by the boys of the United States ; but re- 
sembling, in all its peculiarities, rather the gymnastic and 
truly noble game of " hurling," as practised by the peasantry 
in the southern counties of Ireland. 

Mexico, or Tenuchtitlan, as it was anciently called by the 
natives, is situated in a large plain, environed by mountains 
of so great height, that, though within the torrid zone, the 
temperature of its climate is mild and healthful. All the 
streams which descend from the high grounds are collected 
in several lakes, the two largest of which, of about ninety 
miles in circuit, communicate with each other. The waters 
of the one are fresh ; those of the other, brackish. On the 
banks of the latter, and on some small islands adjoining them, 
was built the capital of Montezuma's empire. The access 
to the city was by artificial causeways or streets, formed of 
stones and earth, about thirty feet in breadth. As the waters 
©f the lake, during the rainy season, overflowed the flat 
country, these causeways were of considerable length. That 
of Tacuba, on the west, extended a mile and a half ; that of 
Tepeaca, on the north west, three miles ; that of Cuoyacan, 
towards the south, six miles. On the east, there was no 
causeway, and the city could be approached only by canoes. 
In each of these causeways, were openings, at proper inter- 
vals, through \^hich the waters flowed, and over these were 
laid beams of timber, which being covered with earth, the 
causeway or street had everywhere a uniform appearance. 



iilS*roIlY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 14$ 

As the approaches to the city were singular, its construction 
was remarkable. Not only the temples of their gods, but 
the houses belonging to their monarch, and to persons of dis- 
tinction, were of so large dimensions, that, in comparison 
with any other buildings hitherto discovered in America, they 
might be termed magnificent. The habitations of the com* 
mon people were mean, resembling the huts of other Indians. 
But they were all placed in a regular manner, on the banks 
of the canals which passed through the city, in some of its 
districts, or on the sides of the street which intersected it in 
other quarters. In several places were large openings or 
squares, one of which, allotted for the great market, is said 
to have been so spacious as to accommodate fifty-tKousand 
persons. In this city, the pride of the new world, and the 
noblest monument of the industry and art of man, while un- 
acquainted with the use of iron, and destitute of aid from any 
domestic animal, the Spaniards, who are most moderate in 
their computations, reckon that there were at least sixty-thou- 
sand inhabitants. 

But how much soever the novelty of those objects might 
amuse or astonish the Spaniards, they felt the utmost solici- 
tude with respect to their own situation. From a concur- 
rence of circumstances, no less unexpected than favourable 
to their progress, they had been allowed to penetrate into the 
heart of a powerful kingdom, and were now lodged in its 
capital, without having once met with open opposition from 
its monarch. The Tlascalans had earnestly dissuaded them 
from placing such confidence in Montezuma, as to enter a 
city of so peculiar a situation as Mexico, where that prince 
would have them at his m.ercy, shut up as it were in a snare^ 
from which it was impossible to escape. They assured him 
that the Mexican priests had, in the name of the gods, coun- 
seled their sovereign to admit the Spaniards into the capital^ 
that he might cut them off there with perfect security, at one 
blow. They now perceived, too plainly, that the apprehen- 
sions of their allies were not destitute of foundation ; that, by 
breaking the bridges placed at certain intervals on the cause- 
way, or by destroying part of the causeways themselves, their 
retreat would be rendered impracticable, and they must re- 
main cooped up in the centre of a hostile city, surrounded by 
multitudes sufficient to overwhelm them, and without a pos- 
sibility of receiving aid from their allies. 

These considerations, so obvious as to occur to the hum- 



144 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA; 

blest soldier, did not escape the vigilant sagacity of their gene- 
ral. Before he set out from Cholulaj Cortes had received 
advice from Vera Cruz, that Qualpopoea, one of the Mexican 
generals on the frontiers, having assembled an army in order 
to attack some of the people whom the Spaniards had en- 
couraged to throw off the Mexican yoke, Escalante had 
marched out, with part of the garrison, to support his allies ; 
that an engagement had ensued, in which, though the Spa- 
niards were victorious, Escalante, with seven of his men, had 
been mortally wounded, his horse killed, and one Spaniard 
had been surrounded by the enemy, and taken alive ; that 
the h^ad pf this unfortunate captive, after being carried in 
triumph to different cities, in order to convince the people 
that their invaders were not immortal, had been sent to Mexi- 
co. Cortes, though alarmed by this intelligence, as an indi- 
cation of Montezuma's hostile intentions, had continued his 
march. But, as soon as he entered Mexico, he became sen- 
sible, that, from an excess of confidence in the superior va- 
lour and discipline of his troops, he had pushed forward into 
a situation, where it was difficult to continue, and from which 
it was dangerous to retire. Disgrace, and perhaps ruin, was 
the certain consequence of attempting the latter. The situa- 
tion was trying, but his mind was equal to the emergency ; 
and, after revolving the matter with deep attention, he fixed 
upon a plan, no less extraordinary than daring. He deter- 
mined to seize Montezuma in his palace, and to carry him 
as a prisoner to the Spanish quarters. From the supersti- 
tious veneration of the Mexicans for the person of their mon- 
arch, as well as their implicit submission to his will, he 
hoped, by having Montezuma in his power, to acquire the 
supreme direction of their affairs; or, at least, with a pledge 
so sacred in his hands,, he entertained no doubt of being 
secure from any effort of their violence. 

This, he immediately proposed to his officers, and it was 
agreed instantly to make the attempt. At his usual hour of 
visiting Montezuma, Cortes went to the palace, accompanied 
by Alvarado, Sandoval, LugOj Velasquez de Leon, and Da- 
vila, five of his principal officers, and as many trusty soldiers. 
Thirty chosen men followed, not in regular order, but saun*^ 
tering at some distance, as if they had no object but curiosity ,* 
small parties were posted at proper intervals, in all the streets 
leading from the Spanish quarters to the court ; and the re- 
mainder of his troops, with the Tlascalan allies, were under 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 145 

arms, ready to sally out on the first alarm. Cortes and his 
attendants were admitted without suspicion ; the Mexicans 
retiring, as usual, out of respect. He addressed the monarch 
in a tone very different from that which he had employed in 
former conferences ; reproaching him bitterly as the author 
of the violent assault made upon the Spaniards by one of his 
officers, and demanded public reparation for the loss which 
they had sustained by the death of some of their companions, 
j as well as for the insult offered to the great prince under 
I whom they serX^ed. Montezuma, confounded at this unex- 
j pected accusation, and changing colour, either from conscious* 
i ness of guilt, or from feeling the indignity with which he was 
treated, asserted his own innocence with great earnestnessj 
and, as a proof of it, gave orders instantly to bring Qualpo- 
poca and his accomplices prisoners to Mexico. Cortes^ re- 
! plied, with seeming complaisance, that a declaration so 
respectable left no doubt remaining in his own mind, but 
that something more was requisite to satisfy his followers ,• 
who would never be convinced that Montezuma did not har- 
bour hostile intentions against them, unless, as an evidence 
of his confidence and attachment, he removed from his own 
palace, and took up his residence in the Spanish quarters, 
where he should be served and honoured as became a great 
monarch. The first mention of so strange a proposal^ be* 
reaved Montezuma of speech^ and almost of motion. At 
length, indignation gave him utterance, and he haughtily 
answered, " That persons of his rank were not accustomed 
voluntarily to surrender themselves as prisoners ; and, were 
he mean enough to do so, his subjects would not permit such 
an affront to be offered to their sovereign."— Cortes, unwil- 
ling to employ force, endeavoured alternately to soothe and 
to intimidate him. The altercation became warm ; and, hav- 
ing continued above three hours, Velasquez de Leon, an im- 
petuous and gallant young man, exclaimed with impatience, 
" Why waste more time in vain 1 Let us either seize him 
instantly, or stab him to the heart."-^The threatening voice 
and fierce gestures with which these words were uttered, 
struck Montezuma* He demanded of Marina, who accom- 
panied Cortes as his interpreter, what it was that the Spanish 
general spoke with so much vehemence ; and she, with an 
ingenuity v/hich never failed her on difficult occasions, re- 
plied in such a manner as if she apprehended being over- 
heard by the Spaniards ; " My lord, you run a great risk, 
N 



146 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

in not yielding to the solicitations of these people : you al- 
ready know their determination, and the supernatural powef 
by \Aihich they are assisted. I am your loyal subject : my 
thoughts have no other employment than to do you service, 
and I am likewise one of their confidants, and well acquainted 
with the secret of their intentions. If you go with them, 
you will be treated with all the respect due to your person ^ 
and dignity : — by longer resistance, you endanger your life !" 

This brief exhortation, well-timed, and delivered with ad- 
dress, prevailed upon Montezuma. Without further oppo- 
sition, he rose from his seat, and said to Cortes, " I trust 
myself into your hands. Let us go to your quarters : it is 
the will of the gods, since you have carried your point, and 
I am resigned** 

His officers were called, he communicated to them his 
resolution, and commanded them to make ready his chair 
and equipage* Though astonished and afflicted, they pre- 
sumed not to question their master's will, but carried him, in 
silent pomp, to the Spanish quarters. 

When it was known that the strangers were conveying 
away the emperor, the people broke out into the wildest 
transports of grief and rage ; threatening the Spaniards with 
immediate destruction, as the punishment justly due to their 
impious audacity. But, as soon as Montezuma appeared 
with a seeming gaiety of countenance, and waved his hand, 
the tumult was hushed ; and, upon his declaring it to be of 
his own choice that he went to reside for some time amongst 
his new friends, the multitude quietly dispersed. 

" Thus," to use the language of an elegant historian, whose 
name we have already placed in our margin, " was a power- 
ful prince seized by a few strangers, in the midst of his capi- 
tal, at noonday, and carried off as a prisoner, without blood- 
shed or opposition. History contains nothing parallel to this 
event, either with respect to the temerity of the attempt, or 
the success of the execution ; and, were not all the circum- 
stances of this extraordinary transaction authenticated by the 
most unquestionable evidence, they would appear so wild 
and extravagant, as to go far beyond the bounds of that pro- 
bability which must be preserved even in fictitious narra- 
tions." 

Montezuma was received in the Spanish quarters with all 
the ceremonious respect which Cortes had promised. He 
was attended by his own domestics, and served withhis usual 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 147 

State. His principal officers had free access to him, and he 
conducted every function of government as if he had been at 
perfect liberty. But to none of his servants or ministers, 
did he disclose the secret of his confinement ; either because 
he was ashamed to own it, or that he feared the loss of his 
life, if they made the least disturbance. The Spaniards^ 
however, watched him with the scrupulous vigilance which 
was natural, in guarding so important a prize; endeavouring, 
at the same time, to soothe and reconcile him to his situa- 
tion, by every external demonstration of regard. Some even- 
ings, he used to play with Cortes at " tololoque ;" which is 
a. game with little balls of gold, with which they endeavoured 
to strike down certain small pins of the same metal. Mon- 
tezuma distributed his winnings amongst the Spaniards ; and 
Cortes presented the fruits of his good fortune to the inferior 
officers of his imperial guest. Montezuma would sometimes 
rally Pedro de Alverado, who counted for them, for his mark- 
ing in favour of Cortes, and pleasantly reproached him for 
being a bad reckoner ; nevertheless, he desired him to mark, 
and to keep a fair account. 

But from captive princes, the hour of humiliation and suf- 
fering is never far distant. Twenty days had scarcely elapsed, 
when the officer of the guard, who had been despatched by 
the orders of Montezuma, to the frontiers of Vera Cruz, re- 
turned, bringing prisoners Qualpopoca, together with his son, 
and five of the principal officers ; who, on seeing the royal 
signet, had surrendered themselves without resistance. The 
emperor delivered them to Cortes, that he might inquire into 
the nature of their crime, and determine their punishment. 
They were formally tried by a Spanish court-martial; and 
though they had acted no other part than what became loyal 
subjects and brave men, in obeying the orders of their lawful 
sovereign, and in opposing the invaders of their country, they 
were condemned to be burned alive. The execution of 
deeds so atrocious is seldom long suspended. The unhappy 
victims were instantly led forth, the pile on which they were 
laid being composed of the weapons collected in the royal 
magazine for the public defence. 

But these were not the most shocking indignities which 
the Mexicans had to bear. Convinced that Qualpopoca would 
not have ventured to attack Escalante without orders from 
his master, the Spaniards were not satisfied with inflicting 
vengeance qu the instrument employed in committing that: 



148 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

crime, while the author of it escaped with impunity. Just 
before Qualpopoca was led oiit to suffer, Cortes entered the 
apartment of Montezuma, followed by some of his officers,^ 
and a soldier carrying a pair of fetters ; and, approaching the 
monarch with a stern countenance, told him, that as the per- 
sons who were now to undergo the punishment which they 
merited, had charged him as the cause af the outrage com- 
mitted, it was necessary that he likewise shauld make atone- 
ment for that guilt ; then, turning away abruptly, without 
waiting for a reply, he commanded the soldier to put the 
fetters upon his legs* The orders were instantly executed. 
The disconsolate monarch, trained up with an idea that his 
person was sacred and inviolable, and considering this profa- 
nation of it as the prelude of immediate death, broke out into 
l;Oud lamentations and complaints. His attendants, speech- 
less with horror, fell at his feet,^^ bathed them with their tears ; 
and, bearing up the fetters in their hands, endeavoured with 
officious tenderness to lighten their pressure ; nor did their 
grief and despondency abate, until Cortes returned from the 
execution, and with a cheerful countenance ordered the fet- 
ters to be taken off. 
-p^ The rigour with which Cortes punished the unhap- 
py persons who first presumed to lay violent hands 
upon his followers, seems to have made all the impression 
that he desired. The spirit of Montezuma was not only 
overawed, but subdued. During six months that Cortes re- 
mained in Mexico^ the monarch continued in the Spanish 
quarters, with an appearance of as entire satisfaction and 
tranquillity, as if he had resided there, not from constraint, 
but through choice. His ministers and officers attended him 
as usual. He took cognizance of all affairs ; every order was; 
issued in his name. The external aspect of government ap- 
pearing the same, and all its ancient forms being scrupulous^ 
ly observed, the people were so little sensible of any change, 
that they obeyed the mandates of their monarch with the 
usual sul3missive reverence. 

Thus, by the fortunate temerity of Cortes in seizing Mon^ 
tezuma, the Spaniards at once secured to themselves more 
extensive authority in the Mexican empire than it was pos- 
sible to have acquired in a long course of time by open force ; 
and they exercised more absolute sway in the name of an- 
other, than they could have done in their own. 

Cortes availed hinaself to. tbe utmost, of the power whiqU 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 14^ 

he possessed of being able to act in the name of Montezu- 
ma. He sent some Spaniards, whom he judged best qualified 
for such commissions, into different parts of the empire, ac- 
companied by persons of distinction, whom Montezuma ap- 
pointed to attend them, both as guides and protectors. They 
visited most of the provinces, viewed their soil and produc- 
tions, surveyed with particular care the districts which yield- 
ed gold or silver, fixed upon several places as proper stations 
for future colonies, and endeavoured to prepare the minds of 
the people for submitting to the Spanish yoke. While they 
v/ere thus employed, Cortes, in the name and by the authority 
of Montezuma, degraded some of the principal officers in the 
empire, whose abilities or independent spirit excited his jea- 
lousy, and substituted in their place persons less capable or 
more obsequious. 

One thing was still wanting, to complete his security. He 
wished to have such a command of the lake, as might ensure 
a retreat, if, either from levity or disgust, the Mexicans should 
take arms against him, and break down the bridges or cause- 
ways. This, too, his own address, and the facility of Mon- 
tezuma, enabled him to accomplish. Having frequently en- 
tertained his prisoner with pompous accounts of the European 
marine and art of navigation, he awakened his curiosity to 
see those moving palaces which had made their way through 
the water without oars. Under pretext of gratifying this de- 
sire, Cortes persuaded Montezuma to appoint some of his 
subjects to convey to Mexico, part of the naval stores which 
the Spaniards had deposited at Vera Cruz, and to employ 
others in cutting down and preparing timber. With their as- 
sistance^ the Spanish carpenters soon completed two brigan- 
tines, which afforded a frivolous amusement to the monarch, 
and were considered by Cortes as a certain resource, if he 
should be obliged to retire. 

Montezuma was amongst the first of the Mexicans who in- 
dulged their curiosity, in witnessing the evolutions of a spe- 
cies of vessels entirely novel in his dominions. For this 
purpose, he fixed upon a place where the lake runs within 
the land, in the manner of a creek, and, at the time appoint- 
ed — one of their most solemn hunting days — all the canoes, 
belonging to the royal fleet, were, early in the morning, on the 
lake, with his whole family, retinue, and huntsmen. He 
added to the usual number of rowers, and ordered them to 
exert their utmost activity and strength ; not without a pre- 
n2 



J 50 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

sumption that they would gain credit by the lightness of the 
canoes, to the disgrace of the Spanish vessels, which, in their 
opinion, were heavy and difficult to govern. But it was not 
long before they were undeceived ; for the brigan tines set 
out with sails and oars, opportunely favoured by the wind, and 
left the canoes a long v/ay behind, to the great astonishment 
of the Indians. This was a day of much diversion to the 
Spaniards, as well on account of the novelty and manner of 
hunting, as of the profuseness and magnificence of the ban- 
quets ; and Montezuma took great pleasure in rallying his 
rowers, for their vain endeavours to overtake the brigantines^ 
and gloried in the victory of the Spaniards, as his own. Af- 
ter their return, all the inhabitants of the city went out, in 
crowds, to behold those floating houses, as they termed the 
brigantines in their own language. They particularly ad- 
mired the management of the rudder, and the sails, which, 
in their opinion, commanded both the v/ater and the wind ; 
an invention which the most intelligent amongst them beheld 
as an ingenuity far beyond their comprehension, and the ma- 
jority of the people as an art supernatural, and a dominion 
over the elements themselves. 

Thus, had the Spanish general excited the admiration and 
respect of the inhabitants of Mexico, by the very instruments 
designed for their destruction. Encouraged by so many in- 
stances of the monarch's tame submission to his will, Cortes 
ventured to put it to a proof still more trying. He urged 
Montezuma to acknowledge himself a vassal of the king of 
Castile, to hold his crown of him as superior, and to subject 
his dominions to the payment of an annual tribute. With 
this requisition, the last and most humbling that can be made 
to one possessed of sovereign authority, Montezuma was so 
obsequious as to comply ; and the act of submission and 
homage was executed with all the formalities which the Spa> 
niards were pleased to prescribe. 

Montezuma, at the desire of Cortes, accompanied this 
profession of fealty with a magnificent present to his new 
sovereign ; and, after his example, his subjects brought in 
very liberal contributions. The Spaniards now collected 
all the treasure which had been either voluntarily bestow- 
ed upon them at different tim^es by Montezuma, or had 
been extorted from his people under various pretexts ; and, 
having melted the gold and silver, the value of these, with- 
out including jewels and ornaments of various kindsj, which 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 151 

were preserved on account of their curious workmanship, 
amounted to six-hundred-thousand pesos. The soldiers were 
impatient to have it divided, and Cortes complied with their 
desire. A fifth of the whole was first set apart as the tax 
due to the king ; another fifth was allotted to Cortes, as com- 
mander-in-chief ; the sums advanced by Velasquez, by Cor- 
tes, and by some of the officers, towards defraying the ex- 
pense of fitting out the armament, were then deducted ; and 
the remainder was divided amongst the army, including the 
garrison of Vera Cruz, in proportion to their different ranks. 

But, however pliant Montezuma might be in other matters, 
with respect to one point he was inflexible. Though Cortes 
often urged him., with the importunate zeal of a missionary, 
to renounce his false gods, and to embrace the Christia;gi^ 
faith, he always rejected the proposition with horror. Super- 
stition, amongst the Mexicans, was formed into so regular 
aad complete a system, that its institutions naturally made a 
strong impression upon the mind; and, while the rude tribes 
in other parts of America were easily induced to relinquish 
a few notions and rites, so loose and arbitrary as hardly to 
merit the name of a public religion, the Mexicans adhered 
tenaciously to their mode of worship, which, however barba- 
rous, was accompanied with such order and solemnity, as to 
render it an object of the highest veneration. Cortes, find- 
ing all his attempts ineffectual to shake the constancy of 
Montezuma, was so much enraged at his obstinacy, that, in 
a transport of zeal, he led out his soldiers to throw down the 
idols in the great temple, by force. But the priests taking 
arajs in defence of their altars, and the people crowding with 
great ardour to support them, the prudence of Cortes over- 
ruled his zeal, and induced him to desist from this rash at- 
tempt, after dislodging the idols from one of the shrines, and 
placing in their stead an image of the Virgin Mary. 

From that moment, the Mexicans, who had permitted the 
imprisonment of their sovereign, and suffered the exactions 
of strangers without a struggle, began to meditate how they 
might expel or destroy the Spaniards, and thought themselves 
called upon to avenge their insulted deities. For this pur- 
pose, the priests and leading men held frequent consultations 
with Montezuma. But, as it might prove fatal to the captive 
monarch to attempt either the one or the other by violence, 
he was willing to try more gentle means. Having called 
Cortes into his presence, he observed, that now> as all the 



152 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

purposes of his embassy were fully accomplished, the gods 
had declared their will, and the people signified their desire, 
that he and his followers should instantly depart out of the 
empire. With this, he required them to comply, or unavoid- 
able destruction would fall suddenly on their heads. The 
tenor of this unexpected requisition, as well as the deter- 
mined tone in which it was uttered, left Cortes no room to 
doubt that it was the result of some deep scheme, concerted 
between Montezuma and his subjects. He quickly perceived 
that he might derive more advantage from a seeming compli- 
ance with the monarch's inclination, than from an ill-timed 
attempt to change or to oppose it ; and replied, with great 
composure, that he had already begun to prepare for return- 
ing to his own country ; but, as he had destroyed the vessels 
in which he arrived, some time was requisite for building 
other ships. This appeared reasonable. A number of Mexi- 
cans were sent to Vera Cruz to cut down timber, and some 
Spanish carpenters were appointed to superintend the work. 
Cortes flattered himself, that, during this interval, he should 
either find means to avert the threatened danger, or receive 
such reinforcements as would enable him to despise it. 

Almost nine months had elapsed, since Portocarrero and 
Montejo had sailed with his despatches to Spain ; and he daily 
expected their return with a confirmation of his authority 
from the king. Without this, his condition was insecure and 
precarious, and, after all the great exploits which he had ac- 
complished, it might be his doom to bear the name and sufiier 
the punishment of a traitor. Rapid and extensive as his 
progress had been, he could not hope to complete the reduc- 
tion of a great empire v/ith so small a body of men, which, 
by this time, diseases of various kinds had considerably thin- 
ned ; nor could he apply for recruits to the Spanish settle- 
ments in the islands, until he received the royal approbation 
of his proceedings. 

While he remained in this most embarrassing situation, 
anxious about v/hat was past, uncertain with respect to the 
future, and, by the late declaration of Montezuma, oppressed 
with a new addition of cares, a Mexican courier arrived, with 
an account of some ships having appeared on the coast. 
Cortes, with fond credulity, imagining that his messengers 
had returned from Spain, and that the completion of all his 
wishes and hopes was at hand, imparted the glad tidings to his 
companions, who received them with transports of mutua! 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 153 

gratulation. Their joy was not of long continuance. A cou- 
rier from Sandoval, whom Cortes had appointed to succeed 
Escalante in command at Vera Cruz, brought certain informa- 
tion that the armament was fitted out by Velasquez, governor 
of Cuba, and, instead of bringing the expected aid, threaten- 
ed them with immediate destruction. 

The motives which prompted Velasquez to this violent 
measure, are obvious. From the circumstances of Cortes's 
departure, it was impossible not to suspect his intention of 
throwing off all dependence upon him. His neglecting to 
transmit any account of his operations to Cuba, strengthened 
this suspicion, which was at last confirmed, beyond doubt, by 
the indiscretion of the officers whom Cortes sent to Spain. 
From some motive, not clearly explained by the cotempo- 
rary historians, they touched at the island of Cuba, contrary 
to the peremptory orders of their general. By this means, 
Velasquez not only learned that Cortes and his followers, af- 
ter formally renouncing all connexion with him, had esta- 
blished an independent colony in New Spain, and were so- 
liciting the king to confirm their proceedings by his authority ; 
but he obtained pai'ticular information concerning the opu- 
lence of the country, the valuable presents received by Cor- 
tes, and the inviting prospects of success that opened to his 
view. Every passion which can agitate an ambitious mind, 
now raged in the bosom of Velasquez, and, with united force, 
excited him to make an extraordinary effort, in order to be 
avenged on the author of his wrongs, and to wrest from him 
his usurped authority and conquests. Nor did he want the 
appearance of a good title, to justify such an attempt. The 
agent whom he sent to Spain with an account of Grijalva's 
voyage, had met a most favourable reception ; and, from the 
specimens which he produced, so high expectations were 
formed concerning the opulence of New Spain, that Velas- 
quez was authorised to prosecute the discovery of the coun- 
try, and appointed governor of it during life, with more ex- 
tensive power and privileges than had been granted to any 
adventurer from the time of Columbus. Elated by this dis- 
tinguishing mark of favour, and warranted to consider Cortes 
not only as intruding upon his jurisdiction, but as disobedient 
to the royal mandate, he determined to vindicate his own 
rights, and the honour of his sovereign, by force of arms. 
In a short time, an armament was completed consisting of 
eighteen ships, which had on board eighty horsemen, eight- 



154 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

hundred foot soldiers, of which eighty were musketeers, and 
a hundred-and-twenty cross-bow men, together with a train of 
twelve pieces of cannon. As Velasquez's experience of the 
fatal consequence of committing to another, what he ought 
to have executed himself, had not rendered him more enter- 
prising, he vested the command of this formidable body, 
which, in the infangy of the Spanish power in America, 
merits the appellation of an army, in Pamphilo de Narvaez, 
with instructions to seize Cortes and his principal officers ; 
to send them prisoners to him, and then to complete the dis- 
covery and conquest of the country, in his name. 
. ., After a prosperous voyage, Narvaez landed his men, 
^ ' without opposition, near St. Juan de Ulua. Three sol- 
diers, whom Cortes had sent to search for mines in that dis- 
trict, immediately joined him. By this accident, he not only 
received information concerning the progress and situation 
of Cortes, but, as these soldiers had made some progress in 
the knowledge of the Mexican language, he acquired inter- 
preters, by whose means he was enabled to hold some inter- 
course with the people of that country. But, according to 
the low cunning of deserters, they framed their intelligence 
with more attention to what they thought would be agreeable, 
than to what they knew to be true ; and represented the situa- 
tion of Cortes to be so desperate, and the disaffection of his fol- 
lowers to be so general, as increased the natural confidence 
and presumption of Narvaez. His first operation, however, 
might have taught him not to rely on their partial accounts. 
Having sent to summon the governor of Vera Cruz to sur- 
render, Guevara, a priest whom he employed in that service, 
made the requisition with such insolence, that Sandoval, an 
ofHcer of high spirit, and zealously attached to Cortes, instead 
of complying with his demands, seized him and his attend- 
ants, and sent them to Mexico, in chains. 

Cortes received them not like enemies, but as friends ; and, 
condemning the severity of Sandoval, set them immediately 
at liberty. By this well-timed clemency, seconded by ca- 
resses and presents, he gained their confidence, and drew 
from them such particulars concerning the force and inten- 
tions of Narvaez, as gave him a full view of the impending 
danger. He had not to contend now with half naked Indians, 
no match for him in war, and still more inferior in the arts 
of policy ; but to take the field against an army, in courage 
and martial discipline equal to his own, in number far supe^ 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 155 

1-ior, acting^ under the sanction of royal authority, and com- 
manded by an officer of known bravery. He was informed 
that Narvaez, more solicitous to gratify the resentment of 
Velasquez, than attentive to the honour or interest of hig 
country, had begun his intercourse with the natives, by re- 
presenting him and his followers as fugitives and outlaws, 
guilty of rebellion against their own sovereign, and of injus- 
tice in invading the Mexican empire ; and had declared that 
his chief object in visiting the country was to punish the Spa- 
niards who had committed these crimes, and to rescue the 
Mexicans from oppression. He soon perceived, that the 
same unfavourable representations of his character and ac- 
tions, had been conveyed to Montezuma ; and that Narvaez 
had found means to assure him, that as the conduct of those 
who kept him under restraint was highly displeasing to the 
king his master, he was charged not only to rescue an injur- 
ed monarch from confinement, but to reinstate him in the 
possession of his ancient power and independence. Ani- 
mated with this prospect of being set free from subjection to 
strangers, the Mexicans, in several provinces, began openly 
to revolt from Cortes, and to regard Narvaez as a deliverer, 
no less able than willing to save them. Montezuma himself 
held a secret intercourse with the new commander, and 
seemed to court him as a person superior in power and dig- 
nity to those Spaniards whom he had hitherto revered as the 
first of men. 

Such, were the various aspects of danger and difficulty 
which presented themselves to the view of Cortes. No situa- 
tion can be conceived more trying to the capacity and firm- 
ness of a general, or where the choice of the plan which 
ought to be adopted was more difficult. After revolving every 
scheme with deep attention, Cortes fixed upon that, which in 
execution was niost hazardous, but, if successful, would prove 
most beneficial to himself and to his country ; and, with the 
decisive intrepidity suited to desperate situations, determined 
to make one bold effort for victory, under every disadvantage, 
rather than sacrifice his own conquests and the Spanish in- 
terest in Mexico. 

But, though he foresaw that the contest must be termi- 
nated finally by arms, it would have been not only indecent, 
but criminal, to have marched against his countrymen, with- 
out attempting to adjust matters by an amicable negotiation. 
In this service, he employed Olmedo, his chaplain ; to whose 



156 HISTORY Oi' SOUTH AMERICA. 

character the function was well suited, and who possessed, 
besides such prudence and address as qualified him to con- 
duct the secret intrigues in which Cortes placed his chief 
confidence. Narvaez rejected, with scorn, every scheme of 
accommodation, and was with difficulty restrained from lay- 
ing* violent hands upon Olmedo and his attendants. He met, 
however, a more favourable reception amongst the followers 
of Narvaez ; to many of whom, he delivered letters, either 
from Cortes, or his officers, their ancient friends and compa- 
nions. Cortes artfully accompanied these with presents of 
rings, chains of gold, and other trinkets of value, which in- 
spired those needy adventurers with high ideas of the wealth 
that he had acquired, and with envy of the good fortune of 
those v/ho were engaged in his service. Some, from hopes 
of becoming sharers in those rich spoils, declared for an im* 
mediate accommodation with Cortes. Others, from public 
vspifit, laboured to prevent a civil war, which, whatever party 
should prevail, must shake, and perhaps subvert the Spanish 
power, in a country where it was so imperfectly established. 
Narvaez disregarded both^ and, by a public proclamation, de- 
nounced Cortes and his adherents as rebels and enemies to 
their country* Cortes, it is probable, was not much surprised 
at the untractable arrogance of Narvaez ; and, after having 
given such a proof of his own pacific disposition j as might 
justify his recourse to other means, he determined to advance 
towards an enemy whom he had laboured in vain to appease. 
^ He left a-hundred-and-fifty men in the capital, 

^^* under the command of Pedro de Alvarado, an officer 
of distinguished courage, for whom the Mexicans had con* 
ceived a singular degree of respect. To the custody of this 
slender garrison, he committed a great city, with all the 
wealth he had amassed, and what was of still greater impor- 
tance, the person of the imprisoned monarchj from whom he 
concealed, with his utmost art, the real cause of his march. 

His strength, even after it was reinforced by the junction 
of Sandoval and the garrison of Vera Cruz, did not exceed 
two-hundred-and-fifty men. As he hoped for success chiefly 
from the rapidity of his motions, his troops were not encum- 
bered either with baggage or artillery. But as he dreaded 
extremely the impression which the enemy might make with 
their cavalry, he had provided against this danger, with the 
foresight and sagacity which distinguish a great commander. 
Having observed that the Indians in the province of Chinan- 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 15t 

lla, used spears of extraordinary length and force, he armed 
his soldiers with thes'e, and accustomed them to that deep 
and compact arrangement which the use of this formidable 
weapon enabled them to assume^ 

< With this small but firm battalion, Cortes advanced to- 
wards Zempoala, of which Narvaez had taken possession. 
During his march, he made repeated attempts towards some 
accommodation with his opponent. But Narvaez requiring 
that Cortes and his followers should instantly recognise his 
title to be governor of New Spain, in virtue of the powers 
which he derived from Velasquez ; and Cortes refusing to 
submit to any autliority which was not founded on a commis- 
sion from the emperor himself, under whose immediate pro- 
tection he and his adherents had placed their infant colony ; 
all these attempts proved fruitless. 

Cortes was a leader of greater abilities and experience, 
than, on equal ground, to fight an enemy so far superior in 
number, and so much better appointed. Having taken his 
station on the opposite bank of the river de Canoas, where he 
knew that he could not be attacked, he beheld the approach 
of the enemy without concern. It was then the beginning 
of the wet season, and the rain had poured down, during a 
great part of the day, with the violence peculiar to the torrid 
zone. The followers of Narvaez, unaccustomed to the hard- 
ships of military service, murmured so much at being thus 
fruitlessly exposed, that, from their unsoldierlike impatience, 
as well as his own contempt of his adversary, their general 
permitted them to retire to Zempoala. The very circum- 
stance which induced them to quit the field, encouraged 
Cortes to form a scheme by which he hoped at once to ter- 
minate the war* 

Having passed the river de Canoas, which was much 
swelled with the rains, not without difficuity^ the water 
reaching almost to their chins, his little army advanced in 
profound silence, each man armed with his sword, his dagger, 
and his Chinantlan spear. Narvaez, remiss in proportion to 
his security, had posted only two sentinels to watch the mo- 
tions of an enemy whom he had so good cause to dread. One 
of these was seized by the advanced guard of Cortes's troops, 
the other made his escape, and, hurrying to the town with all 
the precipitation of fear and zeal, gave so timely notice of 
the enemy's approach, that there was full leisure to prepare 
for their reception. But, through the arrogance and infatua- 
O 



I5S History of sotTH America. 

tion of Narvaez, this important interval was lost. He im- 
puted this alarm to the cowardice of the sentinel, and treated 
\vith derision the idea of being attacked by forces so unequal 
to his own. — The shouts of Cortes's soldiers rushing on to 
the assault, convinced him at last, that the danger which he 
despised was real. 

In the first encounter, Narvaez was wounded in the eye 
with a spear, and, falling to the ground, was dragged down 
the steps, and in a moment put in fetters. The cry of 
victory resounded amongst the troops of Cortes. Those who 
had sallied out with their leader, now maintained the conflict 
feebly, and began to surrender. Amongst the remainder of 
his soldiers, stationed in two smaller towers of the temple, 
terror and confusion preyailed. The darkness was so great, 
that they could not distinguish between their friends and 
foes. Their own artillery was pointed against them. Wherever 
they turned their eyes, they beheld lights gleaming through 
the obscurity of night, which, though proceeding only from 
a variety of shining insects, that abound in moist and sultry 
climates, their affrighted imaginations represented as nume- 
tous bands of musketeers, advancing with kindled matches 
to the attack. After a short resistance, the soldiers com- 
pelled their officers to capitulate, and, before morning, all 
laid down their arms, and submitted quietly to their con- 
querorsi 

This complete victory proved the more acceptable, as it 
was gained almost without bloodshed ; only two soldiers being 
killed on the side of Cortes, and two officers with fifteen 
private men, of the adverse faction. Cortes treated the van- 
quished not like enemies, but as countrymen and friends ; 
and offered either to send them back directly to Cuba, or to 
take them into his service, as partners in his fortune, on equal 
terms with his own soldiers. This latter proposition, seconded 
by a seasonable distribution of some presents from Cortes, 
and liberal promises of more, opened prospects so agreeable 
to the romantic expectations which had invited them to en- 
gage in this service, that all, a few partisans of Narvaez ex- 
cepted, acceded to it, and vied with each other in professions 
of fidelity and attachment to a general, whose recent success 
had given them so striking a proof of his abilities for com- 
mand ; and, by a series of events no less fortunate than un- 
common, Cortes not only escaped from perdition which 
seemed inevitable, but, when he had least reason to expect 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 159 

k, was placed at the head of a thousand Spaniards, ready to 
follow wherever he should lead them. 

The prudent conduct and good fortune of Cortes were 
equally conspicuous. If, by the rapidity of his operations 
after he began his march, he had not brought matters to so 
speedy an issue, even this decisive victory would have come 
too late to save his companions whom he left in Mexico. A 
few days after the discomfiture of Narvaez, a courier arrived, 
with an account that the Mexicans had taken arms, and, 
having seized and destroyed the two brigantines which Cor- 
tes had built in order to secure the command of the lake, 
and attacked the Spaniards in their quarters, had killed seve- 
ral of them, and wounded more, had reduced to ashes their 
magazine of provisions, and carried on hostilities with such 
fury, that, though Alvarado and his men defended themselves 
v/ith undaunted resolution, they must either be soon cut off 
by famine, or sink under the multitude of their enemies. 
This revolt was excited by motives which rendered it still 
more alarming. On the departure of Cortes for Zempoala, 
the Mexicans flattered themselves, that the long expected 
opportunity of restoring their sovereign to liberty, and of 
vindicating their country from the odious dominion of stran- 
gers, had at length arrived ; that, while the forces of their 
oppressors were divided, and th^ arms of one party turned 
against the other, they might triumph with greater facility 
over both. Consultations were held, and schemes formed 
with this intention. The Spaniards in Mexico, conscious of 
their own feebleness, suspected and dreaded those machina- 
tions. Alvarado, though a gallant officer, possessed neither 
that extent of capacity, nor dignity of manners, by which 
Cortes had acquired such an ascendance over the minds of 
the Mexicans, as never allowed them to form a just estimate 
of his weakness or their own strength. Alvarado knew no 
mode of supporting his authority, but force. Instead of em^ 
ploying address to disconcert the plans, or to soothe the 
spirits of the Mexicans, he waited the return of one of their 
solemn festivals, when the principal persons in the empire 
were dancing, according to custom, in the court of the great 
temple ; he seized all the avenues which led to it, and, al- 
lured partly by the rich ornaments worn by them in honour 
of their gods, and partly by the facility of cutting off, at once, 
the authors of ih%\ conspiracy which he dreaded, he fell upon 



160 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

them unarmed and unsuspicious of any danger, and massacred 
a great number ; none escaping but those who made their 
way over the battlements of the temple. An action so cruel 
and treacherous, filled not only the city, but the whole em- 
pire with indignation and rage. All called aloud for ven- 
geance ; and, regardless of the safety of their monarch, whose 
life was at the mercy of the Spaniards, or of their own dan- 
ger in assaulting an enemy who had been so long the object 
of their terror, they committed all those acts of violence, of 
which Cortes received an account. 

To him, the danger appeared so imminent, as to admit nei- 
ther of deliberation nor delay. He set out instantly Avith all 
his forces, and returned from Zempoala, with no less rapidity 
than he had advanced. At Tlascala, he was joined by two 
thousand chosen warriors. On entering the Mexican terri- 
tories, he found that disaffection to the Spaniards was not 
confined'to the capital. The principal inhabitants had de- 
serted the towns through which he passed ; no person of note 
appearing to meet him with the usual respect ; no provision 
was made for the subsistence of his troops ; and, though he 
was permitted to advance without opposition, the solitude 
and silence which reigned in every place, and the horror with 
which the people avoided all intercourse with him, dWavfired 
a deep-rooted antipathy, that excited a just alarm. But, im- 
placable as was the enmity of the Mexicans, they were so 
unacquainted with the science of war, that they knew not 
how to take the proper measures, either for their own safety 
or the destruction of the Spaniards. Uninstructed by their 
former error in admitting a formidable enemy into their capi- 
tal, instead of breaking down the causeways and bridges, by 
which they might have enclosed Alvarado and his party, and 
have effectually stopped the career of Cortes, they again suf- 
fered him to march into the city without molestation, and to 
take quiet possession of his ancient station. 

The transports of joy with which Alvarado and his soldiers 
received their companions, cannot be expressed. Both par- 
ties were so much elated, the one with their seasonable de- 
liverance, the other with the great exploits which they had 
achieved, that this intoxication of success seems to have 
reached Cortes himself; and he behaved on this occasion 
neither with his usual sagacity nor attention. He not only 
li,eglected to visit Montezuma, but embittered the in&ult by 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 161 

expressions full of contempt for that unfortunate prince and 
his people. 

The Mexicans resumed their arms, with additional fury ; 
attacked a considerable body of Spaniards, who were march- 
ing towards the great square in which the public market was 
held; and compelled them to retire, with some loss. Embol- 
dened by this success, and delighted to find that their op- 
pressors were not invincible, they advanced the next day, 
with extraordinary martial pomp, to assault the Spaniards in 
their quarters. Their number was formidable, and still more 
their undaunted courage. Though the artillery pointed against 
their numerous battalions, crowded together in narrow streets, 
swept oif multitudes at every discharge ; though every blow 
of the Spanish weapons fell with mortal effect upon their 
naked bodies, the impetuosity of the assault did not abate. 
Fresh men rushed forward, to occupy the places of the slain, 
and, meeting with the same fate, were succeeded by others, 
no less intrepid and eager for revenge. The utmost effort 
of the abilities and experience of Cortes, seconded by the 
disciplined valour of his troops, was hardly sufficient to de- 
fend the fortifications, that surrounded the post where the 
Spaniards were stationed, into which the enemy were more 
than once on the point of forcing their way. 

Cortes beheld, with wonder, the implacable ferocity of a 
people, who seemed at first to submit tamely to the yoke, 
and had continued so long passive. Some immediate and 
extraordinary effort was requisite, to extricate himself from 
his present situation. As soon as the approach of evening 
induced the Mexicans to retire, in compliance with their 
national custom of ceasing from hostilities with the setting 
sun, Cortes began to prepare for a sally the next day, with 
so considerable a force, as might either drive the enemy out of 
the city, or compel them to listen to terms of accommodation. 

He conducted, in person, the troops destined for this im- 
portant service. Every invention known in the European 
art of war, as well as every precaution, suggested by his long 
acquaintance with the Indian mode of fighting, was employed 
to ensure success. But he found an enemy prepared and de- 
termined to oppose him. The force of the Mexicans was 
greatly augmented by fresh troops, which poured in continu- 
ally from the country, and their animosity was in no degree 
abated. They were led by their nobles, inflamed by the ex- 
hortations of their priests, and fought in defence of theijt 
o2 



1 6^ fflSTORY . OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

temples and families, under the eye of their gods, and m 
presence of their wives and children. Some threw them- 
selves under the very cannon, and assaulted the artillerists 
with incredible resolution, using their instruments pointed 
with flint to break the gates, and tear down the walls : some 
mounted upon their companions' shoulders, to enable them 
to reach the desired object with their weapons ; others made 
ladders of their own lances and pikes, to gain the terraces 
and windows ; and all exposed themselves to lire and sword, 
like men wholly regardless of life, and striving only for the 
salvation of their country. Yet, notwithstanding their num- 
bers, and their enthusiastic contempt of danger and death, 
wherever the Spaniards could close with them, the superiority 
of their discipline and arms obliged the Mexicans to give 
way. But, in narrow streets, and where many of the bridges 
of communication were broken down, the Spaniards could 
seldom come to a fair rencounter with the enemy, and as 
they advanced, were exposed to showers of arrows and stones 
from the tops of the houses. After a day of incessant exer- 
tion, though va&t numbers of the Mexicans fell, and part of 
the city was burned, the Spaniards, weary with the slaughter, 
and harassed by multitudes which successively relieved each 
other, were obliged at length to retire, with the mortification 
of having accomplished nothing so decisive as to compensate 
the unusual calamity of having twelve soldiers killed, and 
above sixty wounded. Another sally, made with greater 
force, was not more effectual, and in it, the general himself 
was wounded in the hand. 

Cortes now perceived, too late, the fatal error into which 
he had been betrayed by his own contempt of the Mexicans,, 
and was satisfied that he could neither maintain his present 
station in the centre of a hostile city, nor retire from it with- 
out the most imminent danger. One resource still remained f 
to try what efifect the interposition of Montezuma might have, 
to soothe or overawe his subjects. When the Mexicans ap- 
proached the next morning, to renew the assault, that unfor- 
tunate prince, at the mercy of the Spaniards, and reduced to 
the sad necessity of becoming the instrument of his ovni dis- 
grace, and of the slavery of his people, advanced to the bat- 
tlements, in his royal robes, and with all the pomp in which 
he used to appear on solemn occasions. At the sight of their 
sovereign, the weapons dropped from their hands, every tongue 
was silent, all bowed their heads, and many prostrated thenob 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. Igg 

selves on the ground. Montezuma addressed them with every 
argument that could mitigate their rage, or persuade them to 
cease from hostilities. " I am so far, my vassals," said he, 
" from looking upon this expression of your zeal as a crime, 
that I cannot deny my inclination to excuse you. It was, in- 
deed, an excess, to take up arms without my leave ; but it 
was an excess of your fidelity and love. You believed, and 
not without some appearance of reason, that I was detained 
by violence in this palace of my ancestors ,- and, to relieve 
your sovereign from duress, is too great an enterprise to be 
attempted without some disorder. But no laws are sufficient, 
to restrain an excess of resentment and grief, within the 
bounds of prudence and moderation ; and, notwithstanding 
that the cause of the commotion is with small foundation, 
since I am without any degree of violence amongst these 
foreigners, whom you treat as enemies, I now see that your 
design is good, thougii you err in your manner of proceeding. 
It is by my own voluntary option, that I have continued with 
them ; and I thought myself obliged to show them this favour, 
on account of the respect which they have always shown to 
me, and out of duty to the prince who sends them. They 
are now dismissed : I have now resolved that they shall de- 
part from my court, and they are preparing immediately to 
quit the country. But it is not reasonable, that I should be 
sooner obeyed by them, than by you, who are my natural sub- 
jects ; nor that their courtesy should appear greater than your 
duty. Lay down your arms, and come to my presence as you 
ought, that, all tumults and disturbance ceasing, you may be 
convinced how much you are in my favour, by the readiness 
with which I will give you my pardon." 

When Montezuma had ended his discourse, a sullen mur- 
mur of disapprobation ran through the people. To this, suc- 
ceeded reproaches and threats : they exclaimed, that he was 
no longer their king ; and that he should quit the diadem and 
sceptre, for the distaff and spindle ; that he was an effemi- 
nate coward, an abject, a vile prisoner, and a slave to his ene- 
mies ; and the fury of the multitude rising in a moment above 
every restraint of decency or respect, flights of aiTows and 
volleys of stones poured in so violently upon the ramparts, 
that, before the Spanish soldiers, appointed to cover Monte- 
zuma with their bucklers, had time to lift them in his defence,, 
two arrows wounded the unhappy monarch, and the blow of 
a stone on his temple struck him senseless to. the ground* 



1^4 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

On seeing him fall, the Mexicans were so much astonished, 
that, with a transition not uncommon in popular tumults, they 
passed in a moment from one extreme to the other, remorse 
succeeded to insult, and they fled with horror ; as if the 
vengeance of Heaven were pursuing the crime which they 
had committed. The Spaniards, without molestation, carried 
Montezuma to his apartments, and Cortes hastened thither to 
console him under his misfortune. But the unhappy monarch 
scorned to survive this last humiliation, and to protract an 
ignominious life, not only as the prisoner and tool of his ene- 
mies, but as an object of contempt or detestation amongst his 
subjects. In a transport of rage, he tore the bandages from 
his wounds, and refused, so obstinately, to take any nourish- 
ment, that he soon ended his wretched days, rejecting with 
disdain all the solicitations of the Spaniards to embrace the 
Christian faith. Cortes was not deficient in the respect due 
to the remains of the unhappy monarch. His first care was 
to assemble all the servants of the deceased emperor, of whom 
he chose six of the most honourable stations, to carry the 
body into the city ; in which number, were comprehended 
some priests who had been taken prisoners, all of them eye- 
witnesses of his wounds and death. The people received the 
body with becoming reverence. They showed, both in the 
adorning of it, and in the funeral pomp, that they were con- 
cerned at his disastrous death, and considered it as an acci- 
dent undesigned ; or perhaps, by that exterior indication of re- 
spect, they thought either to appease or to deceive their gods. 
They conveyed it, the next morning, with great solemnity, 
and with a numerous attendance, to the mountain of Chapul- 
topeque, where they were accustomed to perform the exe- 
quies, and to preserve the ashes of their kings ; and on this 
occasion, the outcries and lamentations of the multitude, re- 
sounded with more than ordinary force, as they themselves 
afterwards acknowledged ; looking upon those honours which 
they had shown to the manes of their deceased king, as an 
act of atonement, and a substantial expiation of their crime. 
On the death of Montezuma, Cortes, having lost all hope 
of bringing the Mexicans to an accommodation, began to pre- 
pare for a retreat. But a sudden motion of the Mexicans en- 
gaged him in new conflicts. They took possession of a high 
tower in the great temple which overlooked the Spanish quar- 
ters, and, placing there five-hundred of their principal war- 
riors, not a Spaniard could stir, without being exposed to their 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 165 

missile weapons. From this post, it was necessary to dislodge 
them, at any risk; and Juan de Escobar, with a numerous 
detachment of chosen soldiers, was ordered to make the at- 
tack. But Escobar, though a gallant officer, was thrice re- 
pulsed. Cortes, sensible that not only the reputation, but the 
safety of his army, depended on the success of this assault, 
ordered a buckler to be tied to his arm, as he could not ma- 
nage it with his wounded hand, and rushed with his drawn 
sword into the thickest of the combatants. Encouraged by 
the presence of their general, the Spaniards returned to the 
charge with such vigour, that they gradually forced their way 
up the steps, and drove the Mexicans to the platform at the 
top of the tower. There, a dreadful carnage began, when 
two young Mexicans of high rank, observing Cortes as he 
animated his soldiers by his voice and example, resolved to 
sacrifice their own lives, in order to cut off the author of all 
the calamities which desolated their country. They ap- 
proached him in a suppliant posture, as if they intended to 
lay down their arms, and, seizing him in a moment, hurried 
him towards the battlements, over which they threw them- 
selves headlong, in hopes of dragging him along, to be dashed 
to pieces by the same fall. Bat Cortes, by his strength and 
agility, broke loose from their grasp, and the gallant youths 
perished in this generous, though unsuccessful attempt, to save 
their country. As soon as the Spaniards became masters of 
the tower, they set fire to it, and, without farther molestation^ 
continued the preparations for their retreat. 

This became the more necessary, as the Mexicans were sa 
much astonished at the last effort of the Spanish valour, that 
they began to change their whole system of hostility^ and, 
instead of incessant attacks, endeavoured, by barricading the 
streets, and breaking down the causeways, to cut off" the com- 
munication of the Spaniards with the continent, and thus to 
starve an enemy whom they could not subdue. The Spa- 
niards began to retreat towards midnight, in three divisions. 
Sandoval led the van ; Pedro Alvarado, and Velasquez de 
Leon, had the conduct of the rear ; and Cortes commanded 
in the centre, where he placed the prisoners, amongst whom, 
were a son and two daughters of Montezuma, together with 
several Mexicans of distinction, the artillery, the baggage^ 
and a portable bridge of timber, intended to be laid over the 
breaches in the causeway. They marched in profound silence 
Hlong the causeway which led to Tacuba, because it yvm 



166 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

shorter than any of the rest, and lying most remote from the 
road towards Tlascala and the sea-coast, had been left more 
entire by the Mexicans. They reached the first breach in it 
without molestation, hoping that their retreat was undiscover- 
ed. But the Mexicans, unperceived, had not only watched 
all their motions with attention, but had made proper dispo- 
sitions for a most formidable attack. While the Spaniards 
were intent on placing their bridge in the breach, and occu- 
pied in conducting their horses and artillery along it, they 
were suddenly alarmed with a tremendous sound of warlike 
instruments, and a general shout from an innumerable multi- 
tude of enemies ; the lake was covered with canoes ; flights 
of^rrows and showers of stones poured in upon them from 
every quarter ; the Mexicans rushing forward to the charge 
with fearless impetuosity, as if they hoped in that moment 
to be avenged for all their wrongs. Unfortunately, the wood- 
en bridge, by the weight of the artillery, was wedged so fast 
into the stones and mud, that it was impossible to remove it. 
Dismayed at this accident, the Spaniards advanced with pre- 
cipitation towards the second breach. The Mexicans hem- 
med them in on every side, and, though they defended them- 
selves with their usual courage, yet, crowded together as they 
were on a narrow causeway, their discipline and military skill 
were of little avail, nor did the obscurity of the night permit 
them to derive great advantage from their fire-arms, or the 
superiority of their other weapons. All Mexico was now in 
arms. Fresh warriors instantly filled the places of those who 
fell. The Spaniards, weary with slaughter, and unable to 
sustain the weight of the torrent that poured in upon them, 
began to give way In a moment, the confusion was univer- 
sal ; horse and foot, officers and soldiers, friends and enemies, 
were mingled together ; and while all fought, and many fell, 
they could hardly distinguish from what hand the blow came. 
Cortes, with about a hundred foot soldiers and a few horse, 
forced his way over the two remaining breaches in the cause- 
way, the bodies of the dead serving to fill up the chasms, 
and reached the main land. Having formed them as soon as 
they arrived, he returned with such as were yet capable of 
service, to assist his friends in their retreat, and to encourage 
them, by his presence and example, to persevere in the ef- 
forts requisite to effect it. He met with a part of his soldiers, 
who had broken through the enemy, but found many more 
overwhelmed by the rnultitude of their aggressors, or perish-. 



mSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 167 

ing in the lake ; and heard the piteous lamentations of others, 
whom the Mexicans, having taken alive, were carrying off in 
triumph to be sacrificed to the god of war. The anguish of 
mind now suffered by Cortes, it is impossible even to conceive. 
He willingly hazarded his own life to rescue his captive friends 
from the horrible death which they were doomed to suffer. 
But, having rather inconsiderately advanced before the rest 
of his troops, he suffered himself to be too impetuously hurried 
away, by the fire which animated his fearless breast, and when 
he at length allowed himself to reflect upon the imminent 
danger of his situation, he perceived that he could not retire, 
in consequence of a numerous throng of the flying enemy 
meeting him in his retreat. Thus circumstanced, he resolv- 
ed to attempt forcing his way through another street, hoping 
that he should there meet less opposition. He had proceeded 
only a few paces, when he found himself amongst a confused 
body of Indians, who were dragging along his intimate friend, 
Andres de Duero, whom they had taken prisoner by the un- 
lucky stumbling of his horse, and who, to avoid being hacked 
to pieces, passively suffered himself to be led away to the 
sacrifice. Cortes intrepidly charged that disorderly convoy. 
Breaking through the foremost, he trampled under his horse's 
feet, all who stood in his way, affording his friend an oppor- 
tunity to disengage himself from those who held him, and to 
use a dagger, which they had overlooked when they disarmed 
him. With this, he opened a way, by the deaths of several 
of the enemy, so far as to recover his lance and horse, when, 
the two friends joining, they passed through the street at a 
full gallop, oversetting whole droves of their opposers, until 
they reached their troops. 

Before day, all who had escaped assembled at Tacuba. 
The morning dawn discovered to the view of Cortes his shat- 
tered battalion, reduced to less than half its number, the sur- 
vivors dejected, and most of them covered with wounds. 

In this fatal retreat, many officers of distinction perished, 
and amongst these, Velasquez de Leon ; who retreated with 
the very last of the rear guard, and on account of his extra- 
ordinary merit, was respected as the second person in the 
army. All the artillery, ammunition, and baggage, were lost ; 
the greater part of the horses, and above two-thousand Tlas- 
calans, were killed, and only a very small portion of the trea- 
sure which they had amassed was saved. 

The first care of Cortes was to find some shelter for his 



lag InSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

wearied troops ; for, as the Mexicans infested them on everj^ 
side, and the people of Tacuba began to take arms, he could 
not continue in his present station. He directed his march 
towards the rising ground, ahd having fortunately discovered 
a temple situated on an eminence, look possession of it. In 
this sacred edifice, dedicated to the sylvan deities, or idols 
of the woods, to which the Indians offered the first-fruits of 
their harvests, he found not only the shelter for which he 
wished, but, what was not less wanted, some provisions to re- 
Fresh his men ; and, though the enemy did not intermit their 
attacks throughout the day, they were with less difficulty pre- 
vented from making any impression. During this time, Cor- 
tes was engaged in deep consultation with his officers, con- 
cerning the route which they ought to take in their retreat. 
They were now on the west side of the lake. Tlascala, the 
only place where they could hope for a friendly reception, 
lay about sixty-four miles to the east of Mexico; so that 
they were obliged to go round the north end of the lake, be- 
fore they could fall into the road which led thither. A Tlas» 
calan soldier undertook to be their guide, and conducted them 
through a country, in some places marshy, in others moun- 
tainous, in all ill-cultivated and thinly peopled. They march- 
ed for six days, with little respite, and under continual alarms, 
numerous bodies of the Mexicans hovering around them, 
sometimes harassing them at a distance with their missile 
weapons, and sometimes attacking them closely in front, in 
rear, in fliank, with great boldness, as they now knew that 
they were not invincible. Nor were the fatigue and danger 
of those incessant conflicts the worst evils to which they 
were exposed. They were under the necessity of having re- 
course for sustenance, to the herbs and roots of the field, 
without examining whether they were poisonous or harmless ; 
although the Spaniards, who were the most prudent, governed 
themselves by the knowledge and example of the Tlascalans. 
One of the wounded horses died, and the occasion which they 
had of his services in the army was joyfully forgotten ; for 
his flesh was divided, as a particular luxury, amongst those 
who were in the greatest want, who celebrated the feast by 
inviting their best friends to partake of that dainty food. 

Amidst their complicated distresses, one circumstance sup- 
ported and animated the Spaniards. Their commander sus- 
tained this sad reverse of fortune with unshaken magnanim- 
ity. His presence of mind never forsook him j his sagacity 



HISTORY OiF SOUTH AMERICA. 169 

foresaw every event, and his vigilance provided for it ; he was 
foremost in every danger, and endured every hardship with 
cheerfulness. 

On the sixth day, they arrived near Otumba, not far from 
the road between Mexico and Tlascala. Early next morn- 
ing, they began to advance towards it, flying parties of the 
enemy still hanging on their rear ; and, amidst the insults 
with which they accompanied their hostilities, Marina re- 
marked that they often exclaimed with ex:ultation, " Go on, 
robbers ; go to the place where you shall quickly meet the 
vengeance due to your crimes." The meaning of this threat, 
the Spaniards did not comprehend, 'until they reached the 
summit of an eminence before them. There,^a spacious val* 
ley opened to their view, covered with a vast army, extending 
as far as the eye could reach. The Mexicans, while with 
one body of their troops they harassed the Spaniards in their 
retreat, had assembled their principal force on the other side 
of the lake ; and, marching along the road which led directly 
to Tlascala, posted it in the plain of Otumba, through which 
they knew Cortes must pass. At the sight of this incredible 
multitude, which they could survey at once from the rising 
ground, the Spaniards were astonished, and even the boldest 
began to despair. But Cortes, without allowing leisure for 
their fears to acquire strength by reflection, led them instant^ 
ly to the charge. The Mexicans waited their approach with 
unusual fortitude. So great, however, was the superiority 
of the Spanish discipline and arms, that the impression of this 
small body was irresistible ; and whichever way its force was 
directed, it penetrated and dispersed the most numerous bat- 
talions. But while these gave way in one quarter, new com- 
I batants advanced from another, and the Spaniards, though 
successful in every attack, were ready to sink under those 
repeated eflbrts, without seeing any end of their toil, or any 
hope of victory. At that time, Cortes observed the great 
standard of the empire, which was carried before the Mexi- 
can general, advancing ,• and fortunately recollecting to have 
heard, that on the fate of it depended the event of every 
battle, he assembled a few of his bravest officers, whose horses 
were still capable of service, and, placing himself at their 
head, pushed forward towards the standard, with an impetu- 
osity which bore down every thing before it. A chosen body 
of nobles, who guarded the standard, made some resistance, 
but were soon broken. Cortes, with a stroke of his lance, 
P 



170 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

wounded the Mexican general, and threw him to the grounds 
Juan de Salamanca alighting, put an end to his life, and laid 
hold of the imperial standard. The moment that their leader 
fell, and the standard, towards which all directed their eyes, 
disappeared, a universal panic struck the Mexicans, every en- 
sign was lowered, each soldier threw away his weapons, and 
all fled with precipitation to the mountains. 

The next day, July 8th, the Spaniards entered the Tlasca- 
lan territories. 

^ Some interval of tranquillity and indulgence was now ab* 
solutely necessary, that the Spaniards might attend to the cure 
of their wounds, and recruit their strength* The army re- 
mained three days in a town called Gualipar^ where they were 
liberally supplied with every thing that was required, at the 
expense of the Tlascalan republic* At the expiration of that 
time, the wounded being in some degree recovered, Cortes 
prepared to march for Otumba. On this occasion the Spa- 
niards put on all their finery, adorning themselves with the 
jewels and plumes of the vanquished Mexicans ; an ostenta- 
tious display^ which gives importance to victory. When 
they approached Otumba, the caziques and ministers of state, 
clad in their richest robesj and accompanied by a numerous 
attendance of their relations, came out of the city, to receive 
the army. The roads were covered with peoploj the air was 
filled with acclamations of popular applause, and nothing 
was heard but the praises of the victors, and reproaches upon 
the Mexicans. On their entrance into Otumba, they were 
entertained with the sounds of kettle-drums, flutes, and wind- 
ing-horns, distributed into several bands, which succeeded 
each other in endeavouring to produce pacific harmony, with 
their rude instruments of warlike music. 

The same evening, they began their festival of the triumph ; 
which continued for several days ; the Indians all employing 
their utmost address to divert their guests. They had shoot- 
ing-matches, and rewards were given to the best marksmen. 
They contended also in the exercises of leaping and running, 
and spent the evenings in the diversion of " the elastic cord ;" 
but the show always ended with balls and certain dances in 
masquerade. 

The sincerity and good deportment of these people, ful- 
filled all the hopes of Cortes. The nobles were friendly and 
respectful ; the common people passionately fond, and sub- 
missively obedient. Cortes expressed a grateful sense of 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 171 

their affection, commended their diversions ; caressing some, 
and honouring others with his confidence. His officers as- 
sisted him in the gaining of friends, by their courtesy and 
presents ; and even the humblest of his soldiers endeavoured 
to make themselves beloved, by generously sharing vi^ith the 
Tlascalans the jewels and other spoils taken by them in the 
battle. But, in the height of this felicity, an accident happen- 
ed, which threw a damp over all their joy. A severe wound 
in the head, which Cortes had received in the disastrous 
evacuation of Mexico, and which had been only imperfectly 
healed, appeared afresh, with unfavourable symptoms ; and 
the too great exercise in which he had indulged on these days 
of rejoicing, caused an inflammation in his brain, with a 
strong fever, which reduced him to such a state, that his life 
was considered in danger. An indescribable alarm pervaded 
the breast of every Spaniard ,* and not an Indian was to be seen 
in Otumba, that did not appear sunk into inconsolable grief. 
The senate sent for all the best physicians of the country. 
Their skill consisted in the knowledge and choice of medi- 
cinal herbs, which they applied with a wonderful discernment 
of their qualities and effects ,- and, in a little time, they healed 
the wound, and restored him to his perfect health. 

In the mean time, Cortes learned that he and his compa- 
nions were not the only Spaniards who had felt the effects of 
the Mexican enmity. A considerable detachment, which 
was marching from Zempoala towards the capital, had been 
cut off by the people of Tepeaca. A smaller party, return- 
ing from Tlascala to Vera Cruz, with the share of the Mexi- 
can gold allotted to the garrison, had been surprised and de^ 
stroyed in the mountains. At a juncture when the life of 
every Spaniard was of importance, such losses were deeply 
felt. The schemes which Cortes was meditating rendered 
them peculiarly afflicting. While his enemies, and even 
many of his own followers, considered the disasters which 
had befallen him, as fatal to the progress of his arms ; and 
imagined that nothing now remained, but speedily to aban- 
don a country which he had invaded with unequal force, his 
mind, as eminent for perseverance as for enterprise, was still 
bent on accomplishing his original purpose, of subjecting the 
Mexican empire to the crown of Castile. Full of this idea, 
he had courted the Tlascalan chiefs with so much attention, 
and so liberally distributed amongst them the rich spoils of 
QtUHiba, that he was now certain of obtaining whatever he 



1 72 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

should require from the republic. He d/ew a small supply 
of ammunition, and two or three field-pieces, from his stores 
at Vera Cruz. He despatched an officer of confidence with 
four ships of Narvaez's fleet to Hispaniola and Jamaica, to 
engage adventurers, and to purchase horses and military 
stores. As he knew that it would be vain to attempt the re- 
duction of Mexico, unless he could secure the command of 
the lake, he gave orders to prepare, in the mountains of Tlas- 
cala, materials for building twelve brigantines, so as they 
might be carried thither in pieces, ready to be put together, 
and launched when he stood in need of their service. 

But while, with provident attention, he was taking those 
necessary &teps towards the execution of his measures, an 
obstacle arose, in a quarter where it was least expected. The 
spirit of discontent and mutiny broke out in his own army. 
Many of Narvaez's followers were planters, rather than sol- 
diers, and had accompanied him to New Spain, with sanguine 
hopes of obtaining settlements, but with little inclination to 
engage in the hardships and dangers of war. As soon as 
they discovered the intention of Cortes, they began secretly 
to murmur and cabal, and, becoming gradually more auda- 
cious, they, in a body, offered a remonstrance to their gene- 
ral, against the imprudence of attacking a powerful empire 
with his shattered forces, and formally required him to lead 
them back directly to Cuba. Though Cortesj long practised 
in the arts of command, employed arguments, intreaties, and 
presents, to convince or to soothe them ; though his own sol- 
diers, animated with the spirit o-f their leader, warmly se- 
conded his endeavours ; he found their fears too violent and 
deep-rooted to be removed, and the utmost he could effect, 
was to prevail with them to defer their departure for some 
time, on a promise that he would, at a more proper juncture, 
dismiss those who should desire it. 

That the malecontents might have no leisure to brood over 
the causes of their disaffection, he resolved instantly to call 
forth his troops into action. He proposed to chastise the 
people of Tepeaca for the outrage which they had committed, 
and, as the detachment which they had cut oft', happened to 
be composed mostly of soldiers who had served under Nar- 
vaez, their companions, from the desire of vengeance, en- 
j, gaged the more willingly in this war. He took the 

^^^^ ' command in person, accompanied by a numerous 
body of Tlascalans, and in the space of a fev/ weeks, after 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. I73 

various encounters, with great slaughter of the Tepeacans, 
reduced that province to subjection. 

All his preparatory arrangements, however, would have 
been of little avail, without a reinforcement of Spanish sol- 
diers. Of this, he was so deeply sensible, that it was the 
chief object of his thoughts and wishes ; and yet his only 
prospect of obtaining it from the return of the officer v/hom 
he had sent to the isles to solicit aid, was both distant and 
uncertain. But what could have been procured neither by 
his own sagacity nor power, he owed to a series of fortunate 
and unforeseen incidents. The governor of Cuba, to whom 
the success of Narvaez appeared an event of infallible cer- 
tainty, having sent tv/o small ships after him with new in- 
structions, and a supply of men and military stores, the 
officer whom Cortes had appointed to command on the coast, 
artfully decoyed them into the harbour of Vera Cruz, seized 
the vessels, and easily persuaded the soldiers to follow the 
standard of a more able leader than him whom they were 
destined to join. Soon afterwards, three ships of more con- 
siderable force came into the harbour. These belonged to 
an armament fitted out by Francisco de Garay, governor of 
Jamaica, and, as if the spirit of revolt had been contagious in 
New Spain, they likewise abandoned the master whom they 
were bound to serve, and enlisted under Cortes. 

From those various quarters, the army of Cortes was aug- 
mented with a-hundred-and-eighty men, and twenty horses. 
The first effect of the junction v/ith his new followers, was to 
enable him to dismiss such of Narvaez's soldiers as remained 
with reluctance in his service. After their departure, he 
still mustered five-hundred-and-fifty infantry; of which eighty 
were armed with muskets or cross-bows — forty horsemen, 
and a train of nine field-pieces. At the head of these, ac- 
companied by ten thousand Tlascalans and other friendly 
Indians, Cortes began his march towards Mexico, on the 
twenty-eighth of December, six months after his disastrous 
retreat. 

Nor did he advance to attack an enemy imprepared to re- 
ceive him. On the death of Montezuma, the Mexican chiefs, 
in whom the right of electing the emperor was vested, had 
instantly raised his brother Quetlavaca to the throne. His 
avowed and inveterate enmity to the Spaniards, would have 
been sufficient to gain their suffrages, although he had been 
less distinguished for courage and capacity. He had an in\^ 
p3 



174 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

mediate opportunity of showing that he was worthy of their 
choice, by conducting, in person, those fierce attacks which 
compelled the Spaniards to abandon his capital ; and, as soon 
as their retreat afforded liim any respite from action, he took 
measures for preventing their return to Mexico, with pru- 
dence equal to the spirit which he had displayed in driving 
them out. He repaired what the Spaniards had ruined in 
the city, and strengthened it with such new fortifications, as 
the skill of his subjects was capable of erecting. Besides 
filling his magazines with the usual weapons of war, he gave 
directions to make long spears, headed with the swords and 
daggers taken from the Spaniards, in order to annoy the 
cavalry. He summoned the people, in every province of the 
empire, to take arms against their oppressors, and as encou- 
ragement to exert themselves with vigour, he promised them 
exemption from all the taxes which his predecessors had im- 
posed. 

But while Quetlavaca was arranging his plan of defence, 
with a degree of foresight uncommon in an Indian, his days 
were cut short by the small pox. This distemper, which 
raged at that time in New Spain with fatal malignity, was 
unknown in that quarter of the globe, until it was introduced 
by the Europeans, and may be reckoned amongst the great- 
est calamities brought upon them by their invaders. In his 
stead, the Mexicans raised to the throne, Guatimozin, a ne- 
phew and son-in-law of Montezuma, a young man of so high 
reputation for abilities and valour, that in this dangerous 
crisis, his countrymen, with one voice, called him to the su- 
preme command. 

-_2i -^s soon as Cortes entered the enemy's territories, 

he discovered various preparations to obstruct his 
progress. But his troops forced their way with little diffi- 
culty, and took possession of Tezeuco, the second city of the 
empire, situated on the banks of the lake, about twenty 
miles from Mexico. Here, he determined to establish his 
head-quarters, as the most proper station for launching his 
brigantines, as well as for making his approaches to the 
capital. 

As the preparations for constructing the brigantines ad- 
vanced slowly, under the unskilful hands of soldiers and 
Indians, whom Cortes was obliged to employ in assisting 
three or four carpenters who happened fortunately to be in 
his service ; and as he had not vet received the reinforce- 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA I75 

ment which he expected from Hispaniola; he was not 
in a condition to turn his arms directly against the capi- 
tal. Three months elapsed, before the materials for the 
brigantines were finished, and before he heard any thing 
with respect to the success of the officer whom he had sent 
to Hispaniola. This, however, was not a season of inaction 
to Cortes. He attacked successively several of the towns 
situated around the lake ; and, though all the Mexican power 
was exerted to obstruct his operations, he either compelled 
them to submit to the Spanish crown, or reduced them to 
ruins. The inhabitants of other towns he endeavoured to 
conciliate by more gentle means, and, though he could not 
hold any intercourse with them but by the intervention of 
interpreters, yet, under all the disadvantage of that tedious 
and imperfect mode of communication, he had acquired so 
thorough a knowledge of the state of the country, as well a& 
of the dispositions of the people, that he conducted his nego- 
tiations and intrigues with astonishing dexterity and success. 
By offering to deliver them from the odious dominion of the 
Mexicans, and by liberal promises of more indulgent treat- 
ment, if they would unite with him against their oppressors, 
he prevailed on the people of several considerable districts, 
not only to acknowledge the king of Castile as their sove- 
reign, but to supply the Spanish camp with provisions, and 
to strengthen his army with auxiliary troops. 

While, by those various methods, Cortes was gradually cir- 
cumscribing the Mexican power, in such a manner that his 
prospect of overturning it seemed neither to be uncertain nor 
remote, all his schemes were nearly defeated, by a conspira- 
cy, no less unexpected than dangerous. But his accustomed 
circumspection and energy, enabled him to dissolve this 
treacherous combination, and, as the most effectual means of 
preventing the return of a mutinous spirit, he determined 
to call forth his troops immediately to action. Fortunately, 
a proper occasion for this occurred, without his seeming to 
court it. He received intelligence that the materials for 
building the brigantines were at length completely finished, 
and waited only for a body of Spaniards to conduct them to 
Tezeuco. The command of this convoy, consisting of two- 
hundred foot soldiers, fifteen horsemen, and two-field pieces, 
he gave to Sandoval, who, by the vigilance, activity, and 
courage which he manifested on every occasion, was growing 
daily in his confidence, and in the estimation of his fellow- 



176 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA 

soldiers. The service was no less singular than important : 
the beams, the planks, the masts, the cordage, the sails, the 
iron-work, and all the infinite variety of articles requisite for 
the construction of thirteen brigantines, were to be carried 
sixty miles over land, through a mountainous country, by 
people who were unacquainted with the ministry of domestic 
animals, or the aid of machines to facilitate any work of la- 
bour. Having observed that those mountains produced trees, 
which afforded a kind of resin, he extracted a quantity suffi- 
cient for the careening of his barks. He was in want also 
of powder, but soon found materials to make it, of a very 
good quality ; procuring sulphur, of the use of which the In- 
dians were wholly ignorant, in a volcano discovered by Diego 
de Ordaz. The Tlascalans furnished eight-thousand Ta- 
menes, an inferior order of men, destined for servile tasks, 
to carry the materials on their shoulders, and appointed fifteen 
thousand warriors to accompany and defend them. Sandoval 
made the disposition for their progress with great propriety, 
placing the Tamenes in the centre, one body of warriors in 
the front, another in the rear, with considerable parties to 
cover the flanks. To each of these, he joined some Spaniards, 
not only to assist them in danger, but to accustom them to 
regularity and subordination. A body so numerous, and so 
much encumbered, advanced leisurely, but in excellent order ; 
and in some places, where it was confined by the woods or 
mountains, the line of march extended above six miles. Par- 
ties of Mexicans frequently appeared, hovering around them 
on the high grounds ; but, perceiving no prospect of success, 
in attacking an enemy continually on his guard, and prepared 
to receive them, they did not venture to molest him : and 
Sandoval had the glory of conducting safely to Tezeuco, a 
convoy, on which all the future operations of his countrymen 
depended. 

This was followed by another event, of no less moment. 
Four ships arrived at Vera Cruz from Hispaniola, with two- 
hundred soldiers, eighty horses, two battering cannon, and a 
considerable supply of ammunition and arms. Elevated by 
observing that all his preparatory schemes, either for recruit- 
ing his own army, or impairing the force of the enemy, had 
now produced their full effect, Cortes, impatient to begin the 
siege in form, hastened the launching of the brigantines. 
To facilitate this, he had employed a vast number of Indians, 
for two months, in deepening the small rivulet which runs 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 177 

fiy Tezeuco into the lake, and in forming it into a canal, nearly 
two miles in length ; and though the Mexicans frequently 
endeavoured to interrupt the labourers, or to burn the brigan- 
tines, the canal was at last completed. Some remains of 
this great work, are still visible ; and the spot where the 
brigantines were built and launched, is still pointed out to 
strangers. On the 28th of April, all the Spanish troops, 
together with the auxiliary Indians, were drawn up on the 
banks of the canal ; and with extraordinary military pomp, 
rendered more solemn by the celebration of the most sacred 
rites of religion, the brigantines were launched. 

Cortes determined to attack the city from three different 
quarters ; from Tepeaca, on the north side of the lake, from 
Tacuba, on the west, and from Cuyocan, towards the south. 
Those towns were situated on the principal causeways which 
led to the capital, and intended for their defence. He ap- 
pointed Sandoval to command in the first, Pedro de Alvarado 
in the second, and Christoval de Olid in the third j allotting 
to each about ten-thousand Indian auxiliaries, together with 
an equal division of Spaniards, who, by the junction of the 
troops from Hispaniola, amounted now to eighty-six horse- 
men, and eight-hundred-and-eighteen foot soldiers ; of whom, 
one-hundred-and-ninety-four were armed with muskets or 
cross-bows : each of the others carried a sword, and buckler, 
and lance. The train of artillery consisted of three batter- 
ing cannon, and fifteen field-pieces. He reserved for him- 
self, as the station of greatest importance and danger, the 
conduct of the brigantines, each armed with one of his small 
cannon, and manned with twenty-five Spaniards, and twelve 
rowers, six on each side. 

T*r ^0 -A-s Alvarado and Olid proceeded towards the 
^ * posts assigned them, they broke down the aque- 
ducts erected by the ingenuity of the Mexicans for convey- 
ing water into the capital, and, by the distress to which this 
reduced the inhabitants, gave a beginning to their calamities. 
Alvarado and Olid found the towns of which they were 
ordered to take possession, deserted by their inhabitants, who 
had fled for safety to the capital, where Guatimozin had col- 
lected the chief force of his empire ; as there alone he could 
hope to make a successful stand against the formidable ene- 
mies who were approaching to assault him. 

The first effort of the Mexicans, was to destroy the fleet 
of brigantines, the fatal effect of whose operations they fore-^ 



178 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

saw and dreaded. Necessity urged Guatimozin to hazard 
the attack ; and, hoping to supply by numbers what he wanted 
in force, he assembled such a multitude of canoes as covered 
the face of the lake. They rowed on boldly to the charge, 
while the brigantines, retarded by a dead calm, could scarcely 
advance to meet them. But, as the enemy drew near, a 
breeze suddenly sprang up ; in a moment, the sails were 
spread, the brigantines, with the utmost ease, broke through 
their feeble opponents, overset many canoes, and dissipated 
the whole armament, with so great slaughter, as convinced 
the Mexicans, that the progress of the Europeans in know- 
ledge and arts rendered their superiority greater on this new 
element, than they had hitherto found it on land. 

From that time, Cortes remained master of the lake, and 
the brigantines not only preserved a communication between 
the Spaniards in their different stations, though at conside- 
rable distance from each other, but were employed to cover 
the causeways on each side, and keep off the canoes, when 
they attempted to annoy the troops as they advanced towards 
the city. Cortes formed the brigantines into three divisions ; 
appointing one to cover each of the stations from which an 
attack was to be carried on against the city, with orders to 
second the operations of the officer who commanded there. 
From all the three stations, he pushed on the attack against 
the city with equal vigour ; but in a manner so very different 
from the conduct of sieges in regular war, that he himself 
seems afraid it would appear no less improper than singular, 
to persons unacquainted with his situation. Each morning 
his troops assaulted the barricades which the enemy had 
erected on the causeways, forced their way over the trenches 
which they had dug, and through the canals where the 
bridges were broken down, and endeavoured to penetrate 
into the heart of the city, in hopes of obtaining some decisive 
advantage, which might force the enemy to surrender, and 
terminate the war at once ; but, when the obstinate valour of 
the Mexicans rendered the efforts of the day ineffectual, the 
Spaniards retired, in the evening, to their former quarters. 
Thus, their toil and danger were, in some measure, continu- 
ally renewed ; the Mexicans repairing in the night what the 
Spaniards had destroyed through the day, and recovering the 
posts from which they had driven them. But necessity pre- 
scribed this slow and untoward mode of operation. The 
jiuiriber of his troops was so small that Cortes durgt not^ 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 179 

with a handful of men, attempt to make a lodgment in a city 
where he might be surrounded and annoyed by so great a 
multitude of enemies. He adhered obstinately, for a month 
after the siege was opened, to the system which he had 
adopted. The Mexicans, in their own defence, displayed 
valour hardly inferior to that with which the Spaniards at- 
tacked them. On land, on water, by night and by day, one 
furious conjElict succeeded to another. Several Spaniards 
were killed, more wounded, and all were ready to sink under 
the toils of unintermitting service, which Were rendered 
more intolerable by the injuries of the season, the periodical 
rains having now set in with their usual violence. 

Astonished and disconcerted by the length and difficulties 
of the siege, Cortes determined to make one great effort to 
get possession of the city, before he relinquished the plan 
which he had hitherto followed, and had recourse to any other 
mode of attack. With this view, on the 3d of July, he sent 
instructions to Alvarado and Sandoval to advance with their 
divisions to a general assault, and took the command, in per- 
son, of that posted on the causeway of Cuyocan. Animated 
by his presence, and the expectation of some decisive event, 
the Spaniards pushed forward with irresistible impetuosity. 
They broke through one barricade after another, forced their 
way over the ditches and canals, and, having entered the 
city, gained ground incessantly, in spite of the multitude 
and ferocity of their opponents. Cortes, though delighted 
with the rapidity of his progress, did not forget that he might 
still find it necessary to retreat ; and, accordingly, appointed 
Julien de Alderete, a distinguished captain, in the troops 
which he had received from Hispaniola, to fill up the canals 
and gaps in the causeway, as the main body advanced. That 
officer, deeming it inglorious to be thus employed, while his 
companions were in the heat of action and the career of vic- 
tory, neglected the important charge, and hurried on, incon- 
siderately, to mingle with the combatants. The Mexicans, 
whose military attention and skill were daily improving, no 
sooner observed this, than they carried an account of it to 
their monarch. 

Guatimozin instantly discerned the consequence of the 
error committed by the Spaniards. He commanded the 
troops posted in the front, to slacken their eflTorts, in order to 
allure the Spaniards to push forward, while he despatched a 
large body of chosen warriors through different streets, some 



180 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

by land, and others by water, towards the great breach in the 
causeway, which had been left open. On a preconcerted 
signal being given, the priest in the principal temple struck 
the great drum consecrated to the god of war. No sooner 
did the Mexicans hear its doleful solemn sound, calculated 
to inspire them with contempt of death and enthusiastic ar- 
dour, than they rushed upon the enemy with frantic rage. 
The Spaniards, unable to resist men, urged on no less by 
religious fury than hope of success, began to retire, at first 
leisurely, and with a good countenance, but, as the enemy 
pressed on, and their own impatience to escape increased, 
the terror and confusion became so general, that, when they 
arrived at the gap in the causeway, Spaniards and Tlascalans, 
horsemen and infantry, plunged in promiscuously, while the 
Mexicans rushed upon them fiercely from every side, their 
light canoes carrying them through shoals which the brigan- 
tines could not approach. In vain, did Cortes attempt to 
stop and rally his flying troops : fear rendered them regard- 
less of his entreaties or commands. Finding all his endeav* 
ours to renew the combat fruitless, his next care was to 
save some of those who had thrown themselves into the water; 
but, while thus employed, with more attention to their situa. 
tion than to his own, six Mexican captains suddenly laid 
hold of him, and were hurrying him off in triumph ; and, 
though two of his officers rescued him at the expense of their 
own lives, he received several dangerous wounds, before he 
could break loose. Above sixty Spaniards perished in the 
rout ; and, what rendered the disaster more afflicting, forty 
of these fell alive into the hands of an enemy never known 
to show mercy to a captive. 

The approach of night, though it delivered the dejected 
Spaniards from the attacks of the enemy, ushered in, what 
was hardly less grievous, the noise of their barbarous tri- 
umph, and of the horrid festival with which they celebrated 
their victory. Every quarter of the cit}r was illuminated; 
the great temple shone with so peculiar splendour, that the 
Spaniards could plainly see the people in motion, and ths 
priests busy in hastening the preparations for the death of 
the prisoners. Through the gloom, they fancied that they 
discerned their companions by the whiteness of their skins, 
as they were stripped naked, and compelled to dance before 
the image of the god to whom they were to be offered. They 
heard the shrieks of those who were sacrificed, and thought 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. I8l 

that they could distinguish each unhappy victim, by the well- 
known sound of his voice. Imagination added to what thay 
really saw or heard, and augmented its horror. The most 

|! unfeeling melted into tea,rs of compassion, and the stoutest 

i heart trembled at the dreadful spectacle which they beheld. 

I The juncture required an extraordinary exertion of forti« 
tude. The Mexicans, elated by their victory, sallied out the 
next morning, to attack Cortes in his quarters. But they 
did not rely alone on the efforts of their own arms. They 
sent the heads of the Spaniards whom they had sacrificed, to 
the leading men in the adjacent provinces ; and assured them 
that the god of war, appeased by the blood of their invaders, 
which had been shed so plentifully on his altars, had declared, 
with an audible voice, that, in eight days time, those hated 

I enemies should be finally destroyed, and peace and prosperity 
re-established in the empire. 

A prediction, uttered with such confidence, and in terms 
so void of ambiguity-, gained universal credit amongst a peo- 
ple prone to superstition. The zeal of the provinces, which 
had already declared against the Spaniards, augmented ; and 
several which had hitherto remained inactive, took arms, with 
enthusiastic ardourito execute the decree of the gods. The 
Indian auxiliaries who had joined Cortes, accustomed to ve^ 
nerate the same deities with the Mexicans, and ta receive the 
responses of their priests with the same implicit faith, aban- 
doned the Spaniards, as a race of men devoted to certain de- 
struction. Even the fidelity of the Tlascalans was shaken; 
md the Spanish troops were left almost alone in their stations. 
I Cortes, finding that he attempted in vain to dispel the super- 

' stitious fears of his confederates by argument, took advan- 
tage, from the imprudence of those who framed the prophecy, 
in fixing its accomplishment so near at hand, to give a strik- 
ing demonstration of its falsity. He suspended all military 
3perations, during the period marked out by the oracle. Un- 
ier cover of the brigantines, which kept the enemy at a dis- 
tance, his troops lay in safety, and the fatal term expired, 
tvithout any disaster. 

Many of his allies, ashamed of their own credulity, re- 
turned to their station. Other tribes, judging that the gods 
who had now deceived the Mexicans, had decreed finally to 
tvithdraw their protection from them, joined his standard* 
9fle of the most considerable, was the nation of the Otomies, 
Q 



182 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

a fierce, untamed people ; who, in the rudest barbarity of na- 
ture, preserved their liberty amongst woods and mountains, 
and had hitherto continued free from subjection to the Mexi- 
can empire, without any other fortification than the sterility 
and misery of their country, which offered no temptations to 
effect their conquest. Such, was the levity of a simple peo- 
ple, moved by every slight impression, that, in a short time 
after so general a defection of his confederates, Cortes saw 
himself, if we may believe his own account, at the head of a 
hundred-and-fifty-thousand Indians. Even with so numerous 
an army, he found it necessary to adopt a new and more wary 
system of operation. Instead of renewing his attempts to 
become master of the city, at once, by so bold but dangerous 
efforts of valour as he had already tried, he made his advances 
gradually, and with every possible precaution against expos- 
ing his men to any calamity similar to that which they still 
bewailed. As the Spaniards pushed forward, the Indians re- 
gularly repaired the causeways behind them. As soon as 
they got possession of any part of the town, the houses were 
instantly levelled with the ground. Day by day, the Mexi- 
cans, forced to retire as their enemies gained ground, were 
hemmed in within more narrow limits. Guatimozin, though 
unable to stop the career of the enemy, continued to defend 
his capital with obstinate resolution, and disputed every inch 
of ground. The Spaniards not only varied their mode of 
attack, but, by the order of Cortes, changed the weapons with 
which they fought. They were again armed with the long 
Chinantlan spears, which they had so successfully employed 
against Narvaez ; and, by the firm array in which this enabled 
them to range themselves, they repelled, with little danger, the 
loose assaults of the Mexicans ; incredible numbers of them 
fell in the conflicts which they every day renewed. While war 
wasted without, famine began to consume them within the 
city. The Spanish brigantines, having the entire command 
of the lake, rendered it almost impossible to convey to the 
besieged any supply of provisions by water. The immense 
number of his Indian auxiliaries, enabled Cortes to shut up 
the avenues to the city by land. The stores which Guati- 
mozin had laid up, were exhausted by the multitudes which 
had crowded into the capital to defend their sovereign and 
the temples of their gods. Not only the people, but persons 
of the highest rank, felt the utmost distresses of famine. 



fflSTORY Ol' SOUTH AMERICA. 183 

Whpt they suffered, brought on infections and mortal distem- 
pers, the last calamity that visits besieged cities, and which 
filled up the measure of their woes. 

But, under the pressure of so many and so various evils, 
the spirit of Guatimozin remained firm and unsubdued. He 
rejected, with scorn, every overture of peace from Cortes, 
and disdained the idea of submitting tc the oppressors of his 
country, determined not to survive its ruin. The Spaniards 
continued their progress. At length, on the 27th of July, 
all the three divisions penetrated into the great square in the 
centre of the city, and made a secure lodgment. Three- 
fourths of the city were now reduced, and laid in ruins. The 
remaining quarter was so closely pressed, that it could not 
long withstand assailants, who attacked it from their new sta- 
tion with superior advantage, and more assured expectation 
of success. The part of Mexico, to which Guatimozin, with 
his ministers, nobles, and soldiery, had retired, was a very 
spacious angle of the city, the longest side defended by its 
bordering on the lake ; the rest, lying at an inconsiderable 
distance from the great square of Tlateluco, being, at every 
avenue, fortified by a strong wall, made of huge planks and 
fascines, and also a broad and deep ditch, full of water. 

It was very remarkable, with how much care the Mexicans 
at this time endeavoured to disguise their distress, and con- 
ceal the necessities under which they laboured ; with what 
ostentation, they strove to induce the Spaniards to believe, 
that, notwithstanding they had no objection to overtures of 
peace, it was not through want of means, or courage to pro- 
secute the war, that they were willing to accept it. They 
sat in public, on the works, to eat ; and threw cakes of maize 
amongst the common people, to show that they had abund- 
ance of provisions. Occasionally, one of their chiefs sallied 
forth, and challenged the stoutest champion of the Spaniards 
to single combat : but the challenger did not long continue 
outside of the walls ; he soon retired, as well pleased with 
the bravado, as he could have been with a victory, had he 
obtained it. One of them, indeed, advanced near the place 
where Cortes stood ; by his personal decorations, seeming to 
be a person of distinction. His arms were a sword and buck- 
ler, which had belonged to one of the Spaniards who had been 
sacrificed. This Indian most arrogantly persisted in his de- 
fiance, to so provoking a degree, that Cortes, quite out of pa- 
tl^qce with his noise and presumptuous behaviour, ordered 



284 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

his interpreter to tell him, that, if he would bring ten others: 
like himself, he would permit that Spaniard— pointing to 
his page who bore his shield — to engage them all at once. 
The Mexican was not insensible of the contempt ; but, with- 
out seeming to notice it, repeated his defiance, with still 
greater insolence ; and the page, whose name was Juan Nu- 
nez de Mercado, a youth about sixteen years of age, suppos- 
ing that this affair regarded himself, because his master had 
directly pointed to him, leaped over the diteh, and attacked 
the challenger, who stood prepared ; but the page, receiving 
the first blow upon his shield, at the same instant gave his 
arxtagonist so bold and vigorous a thrust, that he brought him 
down dead upon the spot. This action was greatly applauded 
by the Spaniards, and admired by the enemy. Immediately 
after his exploit, the page returned, and threw the sword and 
buckler of the vanquished Mexican at the feet of his general ; 
who was so highly pleased with such an instance of early 
valour, that he very warmly embraced the heroic youth, and, 
with his own hand, girded upon him the sword which he had 
so bravely won. 

The Mexican nobles, solicitous to save the life of a mon- 
arch whom they revered, prevailed on Guatimozin to retire 
. -JO from a place where resistance was now vain,. that 

ugus . j^^ n^ight rouse the move distant provinces of the 
empire to arms, and maintain there a more successful strug- 
gle with the public enemy. In order to facilitate the execu- 
tion of this measure, tliey endeavoured to amuse Cortes with 
overtures of submis&ion, that, while his attention was em- 
ployed in adjusting the articles of pacification, Guatimozin 
might escape unpeixieived,. But they made this attempt upon 
a leader of greater sagacity and discernment, than to be de- 
ceived by their arts. Suspecting their intention, and aware 
of what moment it was to defeat it, Cortes appointed Sando- 
val, the officer on whose vigilance he could most perfectly 
rely, to take the command of the brigantines, with strict in- 
junctions to watch every motion of the enemy. Sandoval, at- 
tentive to the charge, observing some large canoes, crowded 
with people, rowing across the lake with extraordinary rapidity, 
instantly gave the signal to chase. Garcia de Holguin, who 
commanded the swiftest sailing brigantine, soon overtook 
them, and was preparing to fire upon the foremost canoe, which 
seemed to carry some person whom all the rest followed and 
obeyed. At ojice, the rowers dropped; their oars, and alJ on 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AlVfERICA. 185 

I board, throwing down their arms, conjured him, with cries and 
! tears, to forbear, as the emperor was there. Holguin eagerly 
I seized his prize, and Guatimozin, with a dignified composure, 
I surrendered himself into his hands. When conducted to Cor- 
I tes, he appeared neither with the sullen fierceness of a barba- 
j rian, nor the dejection of a suppliant.—" I have done," said he, 
! addressing himself to the Spanish general, " what became a 
I monarch. I have defended my people to the last extremity. 
I am now your prisoner, and ready to go whithersoever you 
I think fit to conduct me. I have only to request that some 
I regard be had to the honour of the empress, and to that of 
i the women who accompany her." He then reached out his 
I hand to that princess, to assist her in ascending the brigan- 
tine, so perfectly composed, and free from any consternation ^ 
that, perceiving Holguin to be in some concern about the 
other royal canoes, he, Avith great sedateness of countenance, 
added, " You need not, sir, trouble yourself in respect to those 
my followers ; for they will all come to die at the feet of their 
prince :" and, on the first signal that he made to them, they 
dropped the weapons from their hands, and followed the brig- 
antine, as prisoners, in obedience to their sovereign's com- 
1 mand. Guatimozin, then addressing the Spanish general, 
j said, " Why do you delay, most valiant and renowned captain, 
to take away my life. Prisoners of my rank are only a bur- 
j then to the conqueror. Despatch me, then, at once, and let 
me have at least the satisfaction of dying by your hand, since 
1 could not obtain the happiness of losing my life in my coun- 
try's defence. Take this dagger," — laying his hand upon 
one which Cortes wore — " plant it in my breast, and put an 
end to a life which can no longer be of use." 

As soon as the fate of their sovereign was known, the rc; 
sistance of the Mexicans ceased, and Cortes took possession 
of that small part of the capital which yet remained unde- 
stroyed. Thus, terminated the siege of Mexico, the most 
memorable event in the conquest of America. It continued 
seventy-five days, hardly one of which passed without some 
extraordinary effort of one party in the attack, or of the other 
in the defence of a city, on the fate of which both knew de- 
pended the fortune of the empire. 

The exultation of the Spaniards, on accomplishing this ar- 
duous enterprise, was at first excessive. But it was quickly 
damped by the cruel disappointment of those sanguine hopes, 
which had animated them amidst so many hardships and dan- 



IS& HISTORY OF SOUTH AMEEICA. 

gers. Instead of the inexhaustible wealth which they had 
expected, from becoming masters of Montezuma's treasures, 
and the ornaments of so many temples, their rapaciousness 
could collect only an inconsiderable booty, amidst, ruins and 
desolation. Aware of his impending fate, Guatimozin had 
ordered what remained of the riches amassed by his ances- 
tors, to be thrown into the lake.. The Indian auxiliaries, 
while the Spaniards were engaged in conflict with the enemy, 
had carried off the most valuable part of the spoil. The sum 
to be divided amongst the conquerors, was so small, that 
many of them disdained to accept of the pittance which fell 
to their share, and all mui-mui'ed and exclaimed ; some, against 
Cortes and his confidants, whom they suspected of having 
secretly appropriated to their own use a large portion of the 
riches, which should have been brought into the common 
stock : — others, against Guatimozin, whom they had accused 
of obstinacy, in refusing to discover the place where he had 
hidden his treasure. 

Arguments, intreaties, and promises, were employed, in or- 
der to soothe them, but with so little effect, that Cortes, from 
solicitude to check this growing spirit of discontent, com- 
mitted a deed which stains the glory of all his great actions. 
Without regarding the former dignity of Guatimozin, or feel- 
ing any reverence for those virtues Avhich he had displayed, 
he subjected the unhappy monarch, together with his chief 
favourite, to torture, in order to force from them a discovery 
of the royal treasures, which it was supposed they had con- 
cealed. Guatimozin bore whatever the refined cruelty of his 
tormentors could inflict, with the invincible fortitude of an In- 
dian warrior. His fellow-sufferer, overcome by the violence of 
the anguish, turned a dejected eye towards his master, which, 
seemed to implore his permission to reveal all that he knew. 
But the high-spirited prince, darting on him a look of author- 
ity mingled with scorn, checked his weakness, by asking, 
*' Am I now reposing on a bed of flowers ?" — Overawed by 
the reproach, the favourite persevered in his dutiful silence, 
and expired. Cortes, ashamed of a scene so horrid, rescued 
the royal victim from the hands of his torturers, and prolong- 
ed a life reserved for new indignities and sufferings. 

The fate of the capital, as both parties had foreseen, de- 
cided that of the empire. The provinces submitted, one 
after another, to the conquerors. Small detachments of Spa- 
niards, marching through them without interruption, pene- 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 187 

trated, in different quarters, to the great Southern Ocean ; 
which, according- to the ideas of Columbus, they imagined 
would open a short as well as easy passage to the East Indies, 
and secure to the crown of Castile all the envied wealth of 
those fertile regions ; and the active mind of Cortes began 
already to form schemes for attempting this important dis- 
covery. 

He did not know, that, during the progress of his victo- 
rious arms in Mexico, the very scheme of which he began 
to form some idea, had been undertaken and accomplished. 
As this is one of the most splendid events in the history of 
the Spanish discoveries, and has been productive of effects 
particularly interesting to those extensive provinces which 
Cortes had now subjected to the crown of Castile, the account 
of its rise and progress merits a particular detail, which we 
reserve for the following chapter. 



*e@( 



CHAPTER X. 

CIECUMPTAVIGATION OP THE GLOBE, BY THE FLEET OF 
MAGELLAN. 

Ferdinand Magalhaens, or Magellan, a Portuguese gen- 
tleman of honourable birth, having served several yeai-s in 
the East Indies, with distinguished valour, under the famous 
Albuquerque, demanded the recompense which he thought 
due to his services, with the boldness natural to a high 
spirited soldier. But, as his general would not grant his 
suit, and he expected greater justice from his sovereign,, 
whom he knew to be a good judge and a generous rewarder 
of merit, he quitted India abruptly, and returned to Lisbon^ 
In order to induce Emanuel to listen more favourably to his 
claim, he not only stated his past services, but offered to add 
to them by conducting his countrymen to the Molucca or 
Spice islands, by holding a westerly course ; which he con- 
tended would be both shorter and less hazardous than that 
which the Portuguese then followed by the Cape of Good 
Hope, through the immense extent of the Eastern Ocean.. 
Tiiis was the original and favourite project of Columbus,. 



1Q9 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

and Magellan founded his hopes of success, on the ideas of 
that great navigator, confirmed by many observations, the 
result of his own naval experience, as well as that of his 
countrymen in their intercourse with the east. But, though 
the Portuguese monarchs had the merit of having first 
awakened and encouraged the spirit of discovery in that age, 
it was their destiny, in the course of a few years, to reject 
two grand schemes for this purpose ; the execution of which 
would have been attended with a great accession of glory to 
themselves, and of power to their kingdom. In consequence 
of some ill-founded prejudice against Magellan, or of some 
dark intrigue which cotemporary historians have not ex- 
plained, Emanuel would neither promise the recompense 
which he claimed, nor approve the scheme which he pro- 
posed ; and dismissed him with a disdainful coldness. In a 
transport of resentment, Magellan formally renounced his 
allegiance to an ungrateful master, and fled to the court of 
Castile, where he expected that his talents would be more 
justly estimated. He endeavoured to recommend himself 
by offering to execute, under the patronage of Spain, that 
scheme, which he had laid before the court of Portugal, the 
accomplishment of which, he knew, would wound the mon- 
arch against whom he was exasperated, in the most tender 
part. In order to establish the justness of his theory, he 
produced the same arguments which he had employed at Lis- 
bon ; acknowledging, at the same time, that the undertaking 
was both arduous and expensive, as it could be attempted only 
with a squadron of considerable force, and victualled for at 
least two years. Fortunately, he applied to a minister who 
was not apt to be deterred, either by the boldness of a de- 
sign, or the expense of carrying it into execution. Cardinal 
Ximenes, who at that time directed the affairs of Spain, dis- 
cerning at once the increase of wealth and glory which would 
accrue to his country by the success of Magellan's proposal, 
listened to it with a most favourable ear. Charles V. on his 
arrival in his Spanish dominions, entered into the measure 
with no less ardour, and orders were issued for equipping a 
proper squadron at the public charge, of which the command 
was given to Magellan. 

On the 10th of August, 1519, Magellan sailed from Seville, 
with five ships, which, according to the ideas of the age, 
were deemed of considerable force, though the burthen of 
the largest did not exceed one-hundred^and-twenty tons. 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 189 

jAfter touching at the Canaries, he stood directly south, to- 
wards the equinoctial line, along the coast of America, but 
was so long retarded by tedious calms, and spent so much 
time in searching every bay and inlet for that communication 
with the Southern Ocean which he wished to discover, that 
he did not reach the river De la Plata till the 12th of Janu- 
ary. 1520. That spacious opening through which its vast 
body of water poui-s into the Atlantic, allured him to enter ; 
but, after sailing up it for some days, he concluded, from the 
shallowness of the stream and the freshness of the v/ater, that 
the desired strait was not situated there, and continued his 
course towards the south. On the 31st of March, he arrived 
in the port of St. Julian, about forty-eight degrees south of 
the line, where he resolved to winter. In this uncomfortable 
station, he lost one of his squadron, and the Spaniards suf- 
fered so much from the excessive rigour of the climate, that 
the crews of three of his ships, headed by their officers, rose 
in open mutiny, and insisted on relinquishing the visionary 
project of a desperate adventurer, and returning directly to 
Spain. This dangerous insurrection, Magellan suppressed,, 
by an effort of courage no less prompt than intrepid, in- 
flicting exemplary punishment on the ringleaders. With 
the remainder of his followers, overawed, but not reconciled 
to his scheme, he continued his voyage towards the south, 
and at length discovered, near the fifty-third degree of lati- 
tude, the mouth of a strait, which he entered, notwithstand^ 
ing the murmui^s and remonstrances of the people under his 
command. After sailing twenty days in that winding, dan- 
gerous channel, to which he gave his own name, and where 
one of his ships deserted him, the great Southern Ocean 
opened to his view, and v/ith tears of joy he returned thanks 
to Heaven, for having thus far crowned his endeavours with 
success. 

But he was still at a greater distance than he imagined, 
from the object of his wishes. He sailed during three months 
and twenty days, in a uniform direction towards the north-west, 
without discovering land. In this voyage, the longest that had 
ever been made in the unbounded ocean, he suffered incred- 
ible distress. His stock of provisions was almost exhausted^ 
the water became putrid, the men were reduced to the short- 
est allowance with which it was possible to sustain life, and 
the scurvy began to spread amongst the crews. One circum- 
stance alone afforded them some consolation ; they enjoyed 



190 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA 

an uninterrupted course of fair weather, with so favourable 
winds, that Magellan bestowed on that ocean the name of 
Pacific, which it still retains. When reduced to so great ex- 
tremity, that they must have sunk under their sufferings, 
they fell in with a cluster of small but fertile islands, which 
afforded them so abundant refreshments, that their health 
was soon re-established. From these isles, which he called 
De los Ladrones, from the thievish disposition of the inhabi- 
tants, he proceeded on his voyage, and soon made a more 
important discovery of the islands now known by the name 
of the Philippines. In one of these, he became involved in 
an unfortunate quarrel with the natives, who attacked him 
with a numerous body of troops, well armed ; and while he 
fought at the head of his men with his usual valour, he fell 
by the hands of those barbarians, together with several of his 
principal officers. 

The expedition was prosGCuted under other commanders. 
After visiting many of the smaller isles scattered in the east- 
ern part of the Indian Ocean, they touched at the great island 
of Borneo, and at length landed in Tidore, one of the Mo- 
luccas ; to the astonishment of the Portuguese, who could not 
comprehend how the Spaniards, by holding a westerly course, 
had arrived at that sequestered seat of their most valuable 
commerce, which they themselves had discovered by sailing 
in an opposite direction. There, and in the adjacent isles, 
the Spaniards found a people acquainted with the benefits of 
extensive trade, and willing to open an intercourse with a 
new nation. They took in a cargo of the precious spices, 
which are the distinguished production of those islands ; and, 
with that, as well as with specimens of the rich commodities 
yielded by the other countries which they had visited, the 
Victory, which, of the two ships that remained of the squa- 
dron, was most fit for a long voyage, sailed for Europe, in 
the month of January, 1522, under the command of Juan 
Sebastian del Cano. He followed the course of the Portu- 
guese, by the Cape of Good Hope, and, after many disasters 
and sufferings, he arrived at St. Lucar on the 7th of Septem- 
ber, having sailed round the globe in the space of three years 
and twenty -eight days. 

Though an untimely fate deprived Magellan of the satis- 
faction of accomplishing this great undertaking, his cotem- 
poraries, just to his memory and talents, ascribed to him, not 
only the honour of having formed the plan, but of having sujs 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 19| 

mounted almost every obstacle to its completion, and, in the 
present age, his name is still ranked amongst the highest in 
the roll of eminent and successful navigators. The naval 
glory of Spain now eclipsed that of every other country. By 
a singular felicity, she had the merit, in the course of a few- 
years, of discovering a new continent almost as large as that 
part of the earth which was formerly known, and of ascer- 
taining, by experience, the form and extent of the whole ter- 
raqueous globe. 



»« » » HQQft4<*<»* 



CHAPTER XI. 

fiXECmON OP GUATIMOZIN.' — DISCOVERY OF CALIFORNIA.— 
DEATH OF CORTES. 

1522 ^^ ^^® ^^^^ when Cortes was acquiring territo- 
ries so extensive for his native country, and preparing 
the way for future conquests, it was his singular fate, not 
only to be destitute of any commission or authority from the 
sovereign whom he was so zealously and successfully serving, 
but to be regarded as an undutiful and seditious subject. By 
the influence of Fonseca, bishop of Burgos, his conduct, in 
assuming the government of New Spain, was declared an 
irregular usurpation, in contempt of the royal authority ; and 
Christoval de Tapia received a commission, empowering him 
to supersede Cortes, to seize his person, to confiscate his 
effects, to make a strict scrutiny into his proceedings, and to 
transmit the result of all the inquiries carried on in New 
Spain, to the council of the Indies ; of which, the bishop of 
Burgos was president. A few weeks after the reduction of 
I Mexico, Tapia landed at Vera Cruz, with the royal mandate 
I to strip its conqueror of his power, and to treat him as a 
I criminal. But Fonseca had chosen a very improper instru- 
1 ment to wreak his vengeance on Cortes. Tapia had neither 
i; the reputation nor the talents, that suited the high command 
to which he was appointed. Cortes, while he publicly ex- 
pressed the most respectful veneration for the emperor's au- 
thority, secretly took measures to defeat the effect of his 



X 9^ ttlSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

commission ; and, having ihvolvfed Tapia and his followers in 
a multiplicity of negotiations and conferences, in which he 
sometimes had recourse to threats, but more frequently em- 
ployed bribes and promises, he at length prevailed on that 
weak man to abandon a province which he was unworthy of 
govei'ning. 

But, notwithstanding the fortunate dexterity with which he 
had eluded this danger, Cortes was so sensible of the preca- 
rious tenure by which he held his power, that he despatched 
deputies to Spain, with a pompous account of the success of 
his arms, with further specimens of the productions of the 
country, and with rich presents to the emperor, as the earnest 
of future contributions from his new conquest ; requesting^ 
in recompense for all his services, the approbation of his pro^ 
ceedings, and that he might be entrusted With the govern* 
ment of those dominions, which his conduct and the valour 
of his followers, had added to the crown of Castile. The 
juncture in which his deputies reached the court, was favour- 
able. The internal commotions in Spain, which had dis- 
quieted the beginning of Charles's reign were just appeased* 
The public voice declared warmly in favour of his pretensions ; 
Charles having arrived in Spain about this time, adopted the 
sentiments of his subjects, with a youthful ardour; and, not- 
Withstanding the claims of Velasquez, and the partial repre* 
sentations of the bishop of BurgOs, the emperor appointed 
Cortes captain-general and governor of NeW Spain. 

Even before his jurisdiction received this legal sanction » 
Cortes ventered to exercise all the powers of a governor, andj 
by various arrangements, endeavoured to render his conquest 
a secure and beneficial acquisition to his country. He de* 
termined to establish the seat of government in its ancient 
station, and to raise Mexico again from its ruins ; and, having 
conceived high ideas concerning the future grandeur of the 
state of which he was laying the foundation, he began to re- 
build its capital, on a plan which has gradually formed the 
most magnificent city in Spanish America. At the same 
time, he employed skilful persons to search for mines in 
different parts of the country, and opened some which were 
found to be richer than any that the Spaniards had hitherto 
discovered in America. He detached his principal officers 
into the remote provinces, and encouraged them to settle 
there^ not only by bestowing upon them large tracts of land, 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 193 

but by granting tliem the same dominion over the Indians, 
and the same right to their service, Vv'^hich the Spaniards had 
assumed in the islands. 

It was not, however, without difficulty, that the Mexican 
empire could be entirely reduced into the form of a Spanish 
colony. Enraged and rendered desperate by oppression, the 
natives often forgot the superiority of their enemies, and ran 
to arms in defence of their liberties. In every contest, how- 
ever, the European valour and discipline prevailed. But, 
fatally for the honour of their country, the Spaniards sullied 
the glory redounding from these repeated victories, by their 
mode of treating the vanquished people^ After taking Gua- 
timozih, and becoming masters of his capital, they supposed 
that the king of Castile entered on possession of all the rights 
of the captive monarch, and aifected to consider every effort 
of the Mexicans to assert their own independence, as the re*" 
bellion of vassals against their sovereign, or the mutiny of 
slaves against their master. Under the sanction of those ill- 
founded maxims, they violated every right that should be 
held sacred between hostile nations. After each insurrec- 
tion, they reduced the common people, in the provinces 
which they subdued, to the most humiliating of all conditions, 
that of personal servitude. Their chiefs, supposed to be 
more criminal, were punished with greater severity, and put 
to death in the most ignominious or the most excruciating 
mode, that the insolence or the cruelty of their conquerors 
could devise. In almost every district of the Mexican em- 
pire, the progress of the Spanish arms is mafked v/ith blood, 
and with deeds so atrocious, as disgrace the enterprising 
valour that conducted them to success. In the country of 
Panuco, sixty caziques or leaders, and four hundred nobles, 
were burned at one time. Nor was this shocking barbarity 
perpetrated in any sudden sally of ragej or by a commander 
of inferior note. It was the act of Sandoval, an officer whose 
name is entitled to the second rank in the annals of New 
Spain, and executed after a solemn consultation with Cortes ; 
and, to complete the horror of thie scene, the children and 
relations of the wretched victims were assembled, and com- 
pelled to be spectators of their dying agonies. It seems 
hardly possible to exceed in horror this dreadful example of 
severity ; but it was followed by another, which affected the 
Mexicans still more sensibly, as it gave them a most feeling 
proof of their own degradation, and of the small regard which 
R 



194 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

their haughty masters retained for the ancient dignity and 
splendour of their state. On a slight suspicion confirmed by 
very imperfecf^erevidence, that Guatimozin had formed a 
scheme to shake off the yoke, and excite his former subjects 
to take arms, Cortes, without the formality of a trial, ordered 
the unhappy monarch, together with the caziques of Tezeu- 
co and Tacuba, the two persons of greatest eminence in the 
empire, to be hanged ; and the Mexicans, with astonishment 
and horror, beheld this disgraceful punishment inflicted upon 
persons, to whom they were accustomed to look up with reve- 
rence, hardly inferior to that which they paid to the gods 
themselves. 

Guatimozin was then about twenty-five years of age. He 
Was well proportioned, tail, yet robust, and of so fair a com- 
plexion, that, amongst those of his own nation, he appeared 
like one of a different climate. 

One circumstance saved the Mexicans from further con- 
sumption, perhaps from one as complete as that which had 
depopulated the islands. The first conquerors did not at- 
tempt to search for the precious metals in the bowels of the 
earth. They were neither sufficiently wealthy, to carry on 
the expensive works, which are requisite for opening those 
deep recesses, where nature has concealed the veins of gold 
and silver, nor sufficiently skilful to perform the ingenious 
operations by which those precious metals are separated from 
their respective ores. They were satisfied with the more 
simple method, practised by the Indians, of washing the earth 
carried down rivers and torrents from the mountains, and 
thus collecting the grains of native metal. The rich mines 
of New Spain, which have poured forth their treasures with 
such profusion upon every quarter of the globe, Were not dis- 
covered for many years after the conquest** By that time, 
a more orderly government and police were introduced into 
the colony : — experience, derived from former errors, bad 
suggested many useful and humane regulations for the pro- 
tection and preservation of the Indians ; and, though it then 
became necessary to increase the number of those employed 
in the mines, and they were engaged in a species of labour 
more pernicious to the human constitution, they suffered less 
hardship or diminution, than from the ill-judged, but less 
extensive schemes of the first conquerors. 

* The first mine was opened in 1553» 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA, 195 

While it was tlie lot of the Indians to suffer, their new 
masters seem not to have derived any considerable wealth 
from their ill-conducted researches. According to the usual 
fate of first settlers in new colonies, it was their lot to en- 
counter danger, and to struggle with difficulties ; the fruits 
of their victories and toils were reserved for times of tran- 
quillity, and reaped by successors of gi'eater industry, but of 
inferior merit. 

^ r-^r. Having been again charged with improper conduct 
in the administration of the government of Mexico, 
Cortes determined to repair directly to Castile, and commit 
himself and his cause to the justice and generosity of his 
sovereign. He appeared in his native country with the splen- 
dour that suited the conqueror of a mighty kingdom. He 
brought with him a great part of his wealth, many jewels and 
ornaments of great value, several curious productions of the 
country, and was attended by some Mexicans of the first 
rank, as well as by the most considerable of his own officers. 
The treasure brought home by Cortes, consisted of fifteen- 
hundred marks of wrought plate, two-hundred-thousand pesos 
of fine gold, and ten-thousand of inferior standard ; and, 
amongst the jewels, was one worth forty-thousand pesos.* 
His arrival in Spain removed at once every suspicion and fear 
that had been entertained with respect to his intentions. The 
emperor, having now nothing to apprehend from the designs 
of Cortes, received him like a person whom consciousness 
of his own innocence had brought into the presence of his 
master, and who was entitled, by the eminence of his ser- 
vices, to the highest marks of distinction and respect. The 
order of St. Jago, the title of Marquis del Valle de Guaxaca, 
the grant of an ample territory in New Spain, were succes- 
sively bestowed upon him ; and as his manners were correct 
and elegant, although he had passed the greater part of his 
life amongst rough adventurers, the emperor admitted him to 
the same familiar intercourse with himself, that v/as enjoyed 
by noblemen of the first rank. 

But, amidst those external proofs of regard, there appeared 
symptoms of remaining distrust. Though Cortes earnestly 
solicited to be reinstated in the government of New Spain, — 

* A peso was in value about five shillings, sterling ; a mark was thirteen 
shillings and four pence. 



190 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

of which, he had been unjustly deprived by the jealous in- 
sinuation of his enemies — Charles, too sagacious to commit 
so important a charge to a man whom he had once suspected, 
peremptorily refused to invest him again with powers which 
■tr-on he might find it impossible to control. Cortes, though 
dignified with new titles, returned to Mexico with di- 
minished authority. The military department, with power 
to attempt new discoveries, was left in his hands ; but the 
supreme direction. of civil aifairs was placed in a board, call- 
ed The Audience of New Spain, At a subsequent period, 
when, upon the increase of the colony, the exertion of au- 
thority more united and extensive became necessary, Anto- 
nio de Mendoza, a nobleman of high rank, was sent thither 
as viceroy, to take the government into his hands. 

This division of power in New Spain, proved, as was un- 
avoidable, the source of perpetual dissension, which embit- 
tered the life of Cortes, and thwarted all his schemes. Ag^^j 
he had no opportunity to display his active talents, except i]^9|l 
attem.pfcing new discoveries, he formed various schemes for 
that purpose, all of which bear impressions of a genius that 
delighted in what was bold and splendid.^ He early enter- 
tained an idea, that, either by steering through the gulf of 
Florida along the east coast of North America, some strait 
w^ould be found that communicated with the western ocean J 
or that, by examining the isthmus of Darien, some passage 
would be discovered between the Atlantic and the Pacific 
Ocean. But, having been disappointed in his expectations 
with respect to both, he now confined his views to such voy- 
ages of discovery as he could make from the ports of New 
Spain in the Pacific Ocean. There, he fitted out successively 
several small squadrons, which either perished in the at- 
tempt, or returned without making any discovery of moment. 
Weary of intrusting the conduct of his operations to others, 
Cortes took the command of a new armament, in person, and, 
after enduring incredible hardships, and encountering dan- 
gers of every species, he discovered the large peninsula of 
California, and surveyed the greater part of the gulf which 
separates it from New Spain. The discovery of a country 
of such extent would have reflected credit on a common ad- 
venturer; but it could add little honour to the name of Cor- 
tes, and was far from satisfying his sanguine expectations. 
Bisg-uated with ill-success,, to which, he had not been accus-. 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AlVIERICA. 197 

tomed, and weary with contesting with adversaries to whom 
he considered it as a disgrace to be opposed, he once more 
sought redress in his native country.* 

But his reception there was very different from that which 
gratitude, and even decency, ought to have secured. The 
merit of his ancient exploits was already, in a great measure, 
forgotten, or eclipsed by the fame of recent and more valu- 
able conquests in another quarter of America. His griev- 
ances received no redress ; his claims were urged without 
eifect; and, after several years spent in fruitless application 
to ministers and judges, an occupation the most irksome and 
mortifying to a man of high spirit, who had moved in a sphere 
where he was more accustomed to command than to solicit, 
Cortes ended his days on the 2d of December, 1547, in the 
sixty -second year of his age ; having experienced the same 
unhappy fate with that of all the persons who distinguished 
themselves in the discovery or conquest of the new world. 



CHAPTER XH. 

DISCOVERY AND CONQUEST OF PERU. DEATH OF PIZARRO, 

From the time that Balboa discovered the great Southern 
Ocean, and received the first obscure hints concerning the 
opulent countries with which it might open a communication, 
the wishes and schemes of every enterprising person in the 
colonies of Darien and Panama, were turned towards the 
wealth of those unknown regions. 

Several armaments were fitted out, in order to explore and 
take possession of the countries to the east of Panama, but 
under the conduct of leaders whose talents and resources 
were unequal to the attempt. As the excursions of those 
adventurers did not extend beyond the limits of the province 
to which the Spaniards have given the name of Tierra Firme, 
a mountainous region covered with woods, thinly inhabited, 
and extremely unhealthy, they returned with dismal accounts 
concerning the distresses to which they had been exposedj 

*A.D. 1540. 
r2 



190 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

and the unpromising aspect of the places v/hich they had 
visited. Damped by these tidings, the rage for discovery in 
that direction abated ; and, it became the general opinion, 
that Balboa had founded visionary hopes, on the tale of an 
ignorant Indian, ill understood, or calculated to deceive. 

But there virere three persons settled in Panama, on whom 
the circumstances which deterred others made 30 little im- 
pression, that at the very moment when all considered Bal- 
boa's expectations of discovering a rich country, by steering 
towards the east, as chimerical, they resolved to attempt the 
execution of his scheme. The names of those extraordinary 
men were Francisco Pizarro, Diego de Almagro, and Her- 
nando Luque. Pizarro was the illegitimate son of a gentle- 
man of an honourable family, by a very low woman, and, ac- 
cording to the cruel fate which often attends the offspring of 
unlawful love, had been so totally neglected in his youth by 
the author of his birth, that he seems to have destined him 
never to rise beyond the condition of his mother. In conse- 
quence of this ungenerous idea, he set him, when bordering 
on manhood, to keep hogs. But the aspiring mind of young 
Pizarro disdaining that ignoble occupation, he abruptly aban- 
doned his charge, enlisted as a soldier, and, after serving 
some years in Italy, embarked for America, which, by open- 
ing so boundless a range to active talents, allured every ad- 
venturer v/hose fortune was not equal to his ambition. There, 
Pizarro early distinguished himself. With a temper of mind 
no less daring than the constitution of his body vv^as robust, 
he was foremost in every danger, patient under the greatest 
hardships, and unsubdued by any fatigue. Though so ii]ite= 
rate that he could not even read, he was considered as a man 
formed to command. Every operation committed to his con- 
duct proved successful, as, by a happy but rare conjunctiony 
he united perseverance with ardour, and was as cautious in 
executing, as he was bold in forming his plans. 

Almagro had as little to boast of his descent, as Pizarro* 
The one was an illegitimate son, the other a foundling. Bred, 
like his companion, in the camp, he yielded not to him in 
any of the soldierly qualities of intrepid valour, indefatigable 
activity, or insurmountable constancy in enduring the hard- 
ghips inseparable from military service in the new world. 
But in Almagro these virtues were accompariied with the. 
openness, generosity, and candour, natural to men whose pro- 
fession is arms ; in Pizarro. they were united with the ad- 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. igg 

dress, the craft, and the dissimulation of a politician, with 
the art of concealing his own purposes, and with sagacity to 
penetrate into those of other men. 

Hernando de Luque was an ecclesiastic, who acted both as 
priest and instructer of youth at Panama, and, by means 
which the cotemporary writers have not described, had amass- 
ed riches that inspired him with thoughts of rising to greater 
eminence. 

Such were the men destined to overturn one of the most 
extensive empires in the world. Their confederacy for this 
purpose was authorised by Pedrarias, the governor of Pana- 
ma. Each engaged to employ his whole fortune in the ad« 
venture. Pizarro, the least wealthy of the three, as he could 
not contribute so large a sum as his associates, to the com- 
mon stock, engaged to take ttie department of greatest fatigue 
and danger, and to command in person the armament which 
was to proceed first upon discovery. Almagro offered to con- 
duct the supplies of provisions and reinforcements of troops, 
of which Pizarro might stand in need. Luque was to remain 
at Panama, to negotiate with the governor, and superintend 
whatever was carrying on for the general interest. As the 
spirit of enthusiasm uniformly accompanied that of adven- 
ture in the new world, and, by that strange union, both ac- 
quired an increase of force, this co&federacy, formed by am- 
bition and avarice, was confirmed by the most solemn act of 
religion. Luque celebrated mass, divided a consecrated host 
into three, and reserving one part for himself, gave the other 
two to his associates, of which they partook ; and thus, in the 
name of the Prince of Peace, ratified a contract of which the 
objects were plunder and bloodshed. 

The attempt was begun with a force more suited to the 
humble condition of the three associates, than to the great- 
ness of the enterprise in which they were engaged. Pizarro 
sailed from Panama, on the 14th of November, 1524, with a 
single vessel, of small burthen, and a hundred-and-twelve 
men. But in that age, so little were the {Spaniards acquainted 
with the peculiarities of climate in America, that the time 
chosen by Pizarro for his departure, was the most improper 
in the whole year ; the periodical winds, which had then com- 
menced, being directly adverse to the course which he pur- 
posed to steer. After beating about for seventy days, with 
much danger and incessant fatigue, Pizarro's progress towards 
the south-east was not greater than what a skilful navigator 



200 mSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

will now make in as many hours. He touched at several 
places on the coast of Terra Firma, but found every where 
the same uninviting country which former adventurers had 
described ; the low grounds converted into swamps by the 
overflowing of rivers ; the higher, covered with impervious 
woods ; few inhabitants, and those fierce and hostile. Fa- 
mine, fatigue, frequent rencounters with the natives, and 
above all, the distempers of a moist, sultry climate, combined 
in wasting his slender band of followers. The undaunted 
resolution of their leader continued, however, for some time, 
to sustain their spirits, although no sign had yet appeared of 
discovering those golden regions to which he had promised 
to conduct them. At length, he was obliged to abandon that 
inhospitable coast, and retire to Chuchama, opposite the pearl 
islands, where he hoped to receive a supply of provisions 
and troops from Panama. 

But Almagro, having sailed from that port with seventy 
men, stood directly towards that part of the continent where 
he hoped to meet his associate. Not finding him there, he 
landed his soldiers, who, in searching for their companions, 
underwent the same distresses, and were exposed to the same 
dangers, which had driven them out of the country. Re- 
pulsed at length by the Indians in a sharp conflict, in which 
their leader lost one of his eyes by the wound of an arrow, 
they likewise were compelled to re-embark. Chance led 
them to the place of Pizarro's retreat, where they found some 
consolation in recounting to each other their adventures, and 
comparing their sufferings.* As Almagro had advanced as 
far as the river St. Juan, in the province of Popayan, where 
both the country and inhabitants appeared with a more pro- 
mising aspect, that dawn of better fortune was suificient to 
determine so sanguine projectors not to abandon their scheme, 
notwithstanding all that they had suffered in its prosecution. 

Almagro repaired to Panama, in hopes of recruiting their 
shattered troops. But what he and Pizarro had suffered, gave 
his countrymen so unfavourable an idea of the service, that 
it was with difficulty he could levy eighty men. Feeble as 
this reinforcement was, Almagro took the command of it^ 
and having joined Pizarro, they did not hesitate about re- 
suming their operations. After a long series of disasters and 
disappointments, not inferior to those which they had already 

♦ June 24, 1536. 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 201 

experienced, part of the armament reached the bay of St. 
Matthew, on the coast of Quito, and, landing at Tacamez, to 
the south of the river Emeralds, they beheld a country more 
champaign and fertile than any they had yet discovered in 
the Pacific Ocean ; the natives being clad in garments of 
woollen or cotton stuff, and adorned with trinkets of gold 
and silver. 

Yet, notwithstanding those favourable appearances, magni- 
fied beyond the truth, both by the vanity of the persons who 
brought the report from Tacamez, and by the fond imagina- 
tion of those Vv'ho listened to them, Pizarro and Almagro 
durst not venture to invade a country so populous, with a 
handful of men enfeebled by fatigue and diseases. They re- 
tired to the small island of Gallo, where Pizarro remained 
with. part of the troops, and his associate returned to Panama, 
in hopes of bringing such a reinforcement as might enable 
them to take possession of the opulent territories, whose ex- 
istence seemed to be no longer doubtful. 

But some of the adventurers, less enterprising, or less 
hardy than their leaders, having secretly conveyed lamentable 
accounts of their sufferings and losses to their friends at Pa- 
nama, Almagro met an unfavourable reception from Pedro 
de los Hios, who had succeeded Pedrarias in the government 
of that settlement. After weighing matters with that cold 
economical prudence which appears the first of all virtues to 
persons whose limited faculties are incapable of conceiving 
or executing great designs, he concluded that an expedition, 
attended with so certain a waste of men, would be so detri- 
mental to an infant and feeble colony, that he not only pro- 
hibited the raising of new levies, but despatched a vessel to 
bring home Pizarro and his companions from the island of 
Gallo. Almagro and Luque, though deeply affected with 
those measures, which they could not prevent, and durst not 
oppose, found means of communicating their sentiments pri- 
vately to Pizarro, and exhorted him not to relinquish an en- 
terprise that was the foundation of all their hopes, and the 
only means of re-establishing their reputation and fortune, 
which were both on the decline. Pizarro's mind, bent with 
inflexible obstinacy on all its purposes, needed no incentive 
to persist in the scheme. He peremptorily refused to obey 
the governor of Panama's orders, and employed all his ad- 
dress and eloquence in persuading his men not to abandon 
hini, But the incredible calamities to which they had been 



202 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

exposed, were still so recent in their memories, and the 
thoughts of revisiting their families and friends after a long 
absence, rushed with such joy into their minds, that when 
Pizarro drew a line upon the sand with his sword, permitting 
those who wished to return home to pass over it, only thir- 
teen of all the daring veterans in his service had resolution 
to remain with their commander. 

This small but determined band, fixed their residence in the 
island of Gorgona. This, as it was farther removed from the 
coast than Gallo, and uninhabited, they considered as a more 
secure retreat, where, unmolested, they might wait for supplies 
from Panama, which they trusted that the activity of their 
associates would be able to procure. Almagro and Luque 
were not inattentive or cold solicitors ; and their incessant 
importunity was seconded by the general voice of the colony, 
which exclaimed loudly against the infamy of exposing brave 
men, engaged in the public service, and chargeable with no 
error but what flowed from an excess of zeal and courage, to 
perish, like the most odious criminals, in a desert island. Over- 
come by those entreaties and expcstulations, the governor at 
last consented to send a small vessel to their relief. But, 
that he might not seem to encourage Pizarro to any new en- 
terprise, he would not permit one landsman to embark. 

By this time, Pizarro and his companions had remained 
five months in an island, infamous for the most unhealthy 
climate in that region of America. But, on the arrival of 
the vessel from Panama, they were transported with such joy, 
that all their suff'erings were forgotten. Their hopes revived, 
and Pizarro easily induced, not only his own followers, but 
the crew of the vessel from Panama, to resume his former 
scheme, with fresh ardour. Instead of returning to Panama, 
they steered towards the south-east, and, more fortunate in 
this than in any of their past eflbrts, on the twentieth day 
after their departure from Gorgona, they discovered the coast 
of Peru. After touching at several villages near the shore, 
which they found to be in no way inviting, they landed at 
Tumbez, a place of some note, about three degrees south of 
the line, distinguished for its stately temple, and a palace of 
the Incas or sovereigns of the country. There, the Spaniards 
feasted their eyes with the first view of the opulence and 
civilization of the Peruvian empire. They beheld a country 
fully peopled, and cultivated with an appearance of regular 
industry ; the natives decently clothed, and possessed of in^ 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 208 

geliuity so far surpassing the other inhabitants of the new 
world, as to have the use of tame domestic animals. But, 
what chiefly attracted their notice, was such a show of gold 
and silver, not only in the ornaments of their persons and 
temples, but in several vessels and utensils for common use, 
formed of those precious metals, as left no room to doubt that 
they abounded with profusion in the country. 

But, with the slender force then under his command, Pi- 
Jzarro could only view the rich country of which he hoped 
hereafter to obtain possession. He ranged, however, for some 
time along the coast, maintaining every where a peaceable 
intercourse with the natives, no less astonished at their new 
visitantSj than were the Spaniards, with the uniform appear- 
ance of opulence and cultivation. Having explored the coun- 
try as far as was requisite to ascertain the importance of the 
discovery,* Pizarro procured from the inhabitants some of 
their lamas or tame cattle, to which the Spaniards gave the 
name of sheep ; some vessels of gold and silver, as well as 
some specimens of their other works of ingenuity ; and two 
young men, whom he proposed to instruct in the- Castilian 
language, that they might serve as interpreters in his medi- 
tated expedition. With these, he arrived at Panama, towards 
the close of the third year from the time of his departure 
thence. No adventurer of the age suffered hardships or en- 
countered dangers, equal to those to which he was exposed, 
during this long period. The patience with which he endur- 
ed the one, and the fortitude with which he surmounted the 
other, exceed whatever is recorded in the history of the new 
world, where there occur so many romantic displays of those 
virtues. 

Neither the splendid relation given by Pizarro respecting 
the incredible opulence of the country which he had discov- 
ered, nor his bitter complaints on account of that unseason- 
able recall of his forces, which had disabled him from at- 
tempting to make any settlement, could move the governor 
of Panama to swerve from his former plan of conduct. He 
still contended, that the colony was not in a condition to in- 
vade so mighty an empire, and refused to authorise an ex- 
pedition which he foresaw would be so alluring that it might 
ruin the province in which he presided, by an effort beyond 
its strength* His coldness, however, did not in any degree 

* A. D. 1527. 




204 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

abate the ardour of the three associates ; but they perceiv 
that they could not carry their scheme into execution with- 
out the countenance of superior authority, and must solicit 
their sovereign to grant that permission which they could not 
extort from his delegate. With this view, after adjusting 
amongst themselves that Pizarro should claim the station of 
governor, Almagro that of lieutenant-governor, and Luque 
the dignity of bishop, in the country which they purposed to 
conquer, they sent Pizarro, as their agent, to Spain,* though 
their fortunes were now so much exhausted by their repeated 
efforts, that they found some difficulty in borrowing the small 
sum requisite towards equipping him for the voyage. 

Pizarro lost no time in repairing to court, and, new as the 
scene might be to him, he appeared before the emperor with 
the unembarrassed dignity of a man conscious of what his 
services merited ; and he conducted his negotiations with an 
insinuating dexterity of address, which could not have been 
expected either from his education or former habits of life. 
He made such an impression, both on Charles and his minis- 
ters, that -they not only approved of the intended expedition^ 
but seemed to be interested in the success of its leader. 
Presuming on those dispositions in his favour, Pizarro paid 
little attention to the interest of his associates. As the pre- 
tensions of Luque did not interfere with his own, he obtained 
for him the ecclesiastical dignity to which he aspired. For 
Almagro he claimed only the command of the fortress which 
should be erected at Tumbez. To himself, he secured what- 
ever his boundless ambition could desife. He was appointed 
governor, captain-general, and adelantado of all the country 
which he had discovered, and hoped to conquer^ with su- 
preme authority, civil as well as military ; and with full right 
to all the privileges and emoluments usually granted to ad- 
venturers in the new world. His jurisdiction was declared 
to extend two-hundred leagues along the coast to the south 
of the river St. Jago ; to be independent of the governor of 
Panama; and he had power to nominate all the officers who 
were to serve under him. In return for those concessions, 
which cost the court of Spain nothing, as the enjoyment of 
them depended on the success of Pizarro's own efforts, he 
engaged to raise two-hundred-and-fifty men, and to provide 
the required shipsj arms, and warlike stores. 

* 1528* 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERlCAw 205 

Inconsiderable as was the body of men, which Pizarro had 
undertaken to raise, his funds and credit were so low that 
he could hardly complete half the number ; and, after obtain- 
ing his patents from the crown, he was obliged to depart 
privately from the port of Seville, in order to elude the scru- 
tiny of the officers who had it in charge to examine, whether 
he had fulfilled the stipulations in his contract.* Before his 
departure, however, he received some supply of money from 
Cortes, who, having about this time returned to Spain, was 
willing to contribute his aid towards enabling an ancient 
companion, with whose talents and courage he was well ac" 
quainted, to begin a career of splendour similar to that which 
he himself had finished. 

He landed at Nombre de Dios, and marched across the isth- 
mus to Panama, accompanied by his three brothers, Ferdinand, 
Juan, and Gonzalo ; of whom, the first was born in lawful 
wedlock, the two latter j like himself, were of illegitimate birth ; 
and also by Francisco de Alcantara, his mother's brother. 
^nof) ^^ his arrival at Panama, Pizarro found Almagro 
so much exasperated at the manner in which he had 
conducted his negotiation, that he not only refused to act any 
longer in concert with a man by whose perfidy he had been 
excluded from the power and honours to which he had a just 
claim, but laboured to form a new association, in order to 
thwart or to rival his former confederate in his discoveries^ 
Pizarro, however, had more wisdom and address than to suf- 
fer a rupture so fatal to all his schemes, to become irrepara- 
ble. By offering voluntarily to relinquish the office of ade- 
lantado, and promising to concur in soliciting that title, with 
an independent government, for Almagro, he gradually miti- 
gated the rage of an open-hearted soldier, which had been vio- 
lent, but was not implacable. — Luque, highly satisfied with 
having been successful in all his own pretensions, cordially 
seconded Pizarro's endeavours. A reconciliation was effected, 
and the confederacy renewed on its original terms, that the 
enterprise should be carried on at the common expense of 
the associates, and the profits accruing from it equally divided 
amongst them. 

Feb 1531 Even after their re-union, and the utmost ef- 
forts of their interest, three small vessels, with 
a hundred-and-eight soldiers, thirty-six of whom were horse- 

* 1529* 

IS 



206 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

men, composed the armament which they were able t6 
equip. But the astonishing progress of the Spaniards in 
America, had inspired them with such ideas of their own 
superiority, that Pizarro did not hesitate to sail with this 
contemptible force, to invade a great empire. Almagro was 
left at Panama, as formerlyj to follow him with what rein- 
forcement of men he should be able to muster. As the sea- 
son for embarking was properly chosen, and the course of 
navigation between Panama and Peru was now better known, 
Pizarro completed the voyage in thirteen days ; though, by 
the force of the winds and currents, he was carried above 
a hundred leagues to the north of Tumbez, the place of his 
destination, and obliged to land his troops in the bay of St. 
Matthew. Without losing a moment, he began to advance 
towards the south, taking care, however, not to depart far from 
the sea-shore ; both that he might easily effect a junction 
with the supplies which he expected from Panama, and se- 
cure a retreat in case of any disaster, by keeping as near as 
possible to his ships. At length, they reached the province 
of Coaque ; and, having surprised the principal settlement of 
the natives, they seized their vessels and ornaments of gold 
and silver, to the amount of thirty-thousand pesos, with other 
booty of so great value^ as dispelled all their doubts, and in^ 
spired the most desponding with sanguine hopes. 

Pizarro hmiself was so much delighted with this rich spoil, 
which he considered as the first fruits of a land abounding 
with treasure, that he instantly despatched one of his ships 
to Panama, with a large remittance to Almagro ; and another 
to Nicaragua^ with a considerable sum to several persons of 
influence in that province, in hopes of alluring adventurers, 
by this early display of wealth. Meanwhile, he Continued 
his march along the coast, and met little resistance until he 
attacked the island of I%na, in the bay of Guayquil. As there, 
the population was more dense, than in the country through 
which he had passed, and the inhabitants fiercer and less civi- 
lized than those of the continent, they defended themselves 
with so obstinate valour, that Pizarro spent six months in reduc- 
ing them to subjection. From Puna, he proceeded to Tumbez, 
where the distempers which raged amongst his men com- 
pelled him to remain for three months. 
1 'SSQ While thus employed, he began to reap advantage 
from his attention to spread the fame of his success at 
Coaque. Two different detachments arrived from Nicaragua, 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 207 

which, though neither exceeded thirty men, he considered as 
a reinforcement of great importance to his feeble band, espe- 
cially as the one was under the command of Sebastian Benal- 
cazar, and the other of Hernando Soto, officers not inferior 
in merit and reputation to any who had served in America. 
From Tumbez, he proceeded to the river Piura, and in an 
advantageous station near its mouth, he established the first 
Spanish colony in Peru ; to which, he gave the name of St. 
Michael. 

As Pizarro continued to advance towards the centre of the 
Peruvian empire, he gradually received more full informa- 
tion concerning its extent and policy, as well as the existing 
situation of its affairs. Without some knowledge of these, he 
could not have conducted his operations with efficiency ; and, 
without a suitable attention to them, it is impossible to ac- 
count for the progress which the Spaniards had already made, 
or to unfold the causes of their subsequent success. 

At the time when the Spaniards invaded Peru, the domin- 
ions of its sovereigns extended in length, from north to south, 
above fifteen-hundred miles along the Pacific Ocean. Its 
breadth, from east to west, was m.uch less considerable ; being 
uniformly bounded by the vast ridge of the Andes, stretching 
from its one extremity to the other. Peru, like the rest of 
the new world, was originally possessed by small indepen- 
dent tribes, differing from each other in manners, and in their 
forms of rude policy. All, however, were so little civilized, 
that, if the traditions concerning their mode of life, preserved 
by their descendants, deserve credit, they must be classed 
amongst the most unimproved savages of America. Stran- 
gers to every species of cultivation or regular industry, with- 
out any fixed residence, and unacquainted with those senti- 
ments and obligations which form the first bonds of social 
union, they are said to have roamed about naked in the forests, 
with which the country was then covered, more like wild 
beasts than like men. After they had struggled, for several 
ages, with the hardships and calamities which are inevitable 
in such a state, and when no circumstance seemed to indi- 
cate the approach of any uncommon effort towards improve- 
ment, we are told that there appeared, on the banks of the 
lake Titiaca, a man and woman, of majestic form, and clothed 
in decent garments. They declared themselves to be chil- 
dren of the Sun, sent by their beneficent parent, who beheld 
with pity the miseries of the hunian race, to instruct and ta 



208 fflSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

reclaim them. At their persuasion, enforced by reverence 
for the divinity in whose name they were supposed to speak, 
several of the dispersed savages united together, and, receiv- 
ing their commands as heavenly injunctions, followed them 
to Cuzco, where they settled, and began to lay the founda- 
tions of a city. 

Manco Capac and Mama Ocollo,^ for such were the names 
of those extraordinary personages, having thus collected some 
wandering tribes, formed that social union, which, by multi- 
plying the desires, and uniting the efforts of the human spe- 
cies, excites industry, and leads to improvement. Manco 
Capac instructed the men in agriculture, and other useful 
arts. Mama Ocollo taught the w^omen to spin and weave. 
After securing the objects of first necessity in an infant 
state, by providing food, raiment, and habitations, for the rude 
people of whom he took charge, Manco Capac turned his 
attention towards introducing such laws and policy as might 
perpetuate their happiness. By his institutions, which shall 
be more particularly explained hereafter, the various relations 
in private life were established, and the duties resulting from 
them prescribed with such propriety, as gradually formed a 
barbarous people to decency of manners. In public adminis- 
tration, the functions of persons in authority were so precisely 
defined, and the subordination of those under their jurisdic- 
tion maintained with so steady a hand, that the society in 
which he presided, soon assumed the aspect of a regular and 
well-governed state. 

Thus, according to the Indian tradition, was founded the 
empire of the Incas or Lords of Peru. At first, its extent 
was small. The territory of Manco Capac did not reach 
above eight leagues from Cuzco. But, within its narrow pre- 
cincts, he exercised absolute and uncontrolled authority. His 
successors, as their dominions extended, arrogated a similar 
jurisdiction over the nev/ subjects which they acquired : the 
despotism of Asia was not more complete. The Incas were 
not only obeyed as monarchs, but revered as divinities. 
Their blood was held to be sacred, apd, by prohibiting inter- 
marriages with the people^ was never contaminated, by mix- 
ing with that of any other race. Thus separated from the 
rest of the nation, the family was distinguished by peculiari- 
ties in dress and ornaments, which it was unlawful for others 
to assume. The monarch himself appeared with ensigns of 
royalty reserved for him. alone, and received from his subjects 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 209 

marks of obsequious homage and respect, which approached 
almost to adoration. 

When the Spaniards first visited the coast of Peru, in the 
year 1526, Haana Capac, the twelfth monarch from the 
founder of the state, was seated on the throne. He is repre- 
sented as a prince distinguished not only for the pacific vir- 
tues peculiar to the race, but eminent for his martial talents. 
By his victorious arms, the kingdom of Quito was subjected ; 
a conquest of so great extent and importance, as almost 
doubled the power of the Peruvian empire. He was fond of 
residing in the capital of that valuable province, which he 
had added to his dominions ; and, notwithstanding the ancient 
and fundamental law of the monarchy, against polluting the 
royal blood by any foreign alliance, he married the daughter 
of the vanquished monarch of Quito. She bore him a sori" 
named Atahualpa, whom, on his death at Quito, which seems 
to have happened about the year 1529, he appointed his suc- 
cessor in that kingdom, leaving the rest of bis dominions to 
Huascar, his eldest son, by a mother of the royal race. 
Greatly as the Peruvians revered the memory of a monarch 
who had reigned with greater reputation and splendour than 
any of his predecessors, the destination of Huana Capac con- 
cerning the succession, appeared so repugnant to a maxim 
coeval with the empire, and founded on authority deemed 
sacred, that it was no sooner known at Cuzco, than it excited 
general disgust. Encouraged by those sentiments of his sub- 
jects, Huascar required his brother to renounce the govern- 
ment of Quito, and to acknowledge him as his lawful supe^ 
rior. But it had been the first care of Atahualpa to gain a 
large body of troops, the flower of the Peruvian warriors, 
which had accompanied his father to Quito ; relying on whose 
support, Atahualpa first eluded his brother's demand, and 
then marched against him in hostile array. 

Thus, the ambition of two young men, involved Peru in 
civil war ; a calamity, to which, under a succession of virtu- 
ous princes, it had hitherto been a stranger. In such a con- 
test, the issue was obvious. The force of arms triumphed 
over the authority of laws. Atahualpa remained victorious, 
and made a cruel use of his victory. Conscious of the de- 
fect in his own title to the crown, he attempted to extermi- 
nate the royal race, by putting to death all the children of 
the Sun descended from' Manco Capac, whom he could seize 
either by force or stratagem. From a political motivCj th© 
s2 



210 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

life of his unfortunate rival, Huascar, who had been taken 
prisoner in a battle which decided the fate of the empire, 
was prolonged for some time, that, by issuing orders in his 
name, the usurper might more easily establish his own au- 
thority. 

When Pizarro landed in the bay of St. Matthew, this civil 
war raged between the two brothers, in its greatest fury. 
The two competitors, though they received early accounts 
of the arrival and violent proceedings of the Spaniards, were 
so intent upon the operations of a war, which they deemed 
more interesting, that they paid no attention to the motions 
of an enemy, too inconsiderable in number to excite any 
great alarm, and to whom, it would be easy, as they ima- 
gined, to give a check when more at leisure. 

By this fortunate coincidence of events, of which Pizarro 
could have had no foresight, he was permitted to carry on 
his operations unmolested, and advanced to the centre of a 
great empire, before one effort of its power was exerted to 
stop his career. During their progress, the Spaniards had 
acquired some imperfect knowledge of this struggle between 
the two contending factions. The first complete informa- 
tion, they received from messengers whom Huascar sent to 
Pizarro, in order to solicit his aid against Atahualpa, whom 
he represented as a rebel and a usurper. Pizarro perceived 
at once the importance of this intelligence, and foresav/ so 
clearly all the advantages which might be derived from this 
divided state of the kingdom, that, without waiting for the 
reinforcement which he expected from Panama, he deter- 
mined to push forward, while intestine discord put it out of 
the power of the Peruvians to attack him with their whole 
force. 

As he was obliged to divide his troops, in order to leave a 
garrison in St. Michael, he began his march with a very 
slender and ill-accoutred train of followers. They consisted 
of sixty-two horsemen, and a hundred-and-two foot-soldiers, 
of whom twenty were armed with cross-bows, and three with 
muskets. He directed his course towards Caxamalca, a 
small town at the distance of twelve days' march from St, 
Michael, where Atahualpa was encamped with a considera- 
ble body of troops. Before he had proceeded far, an officer, 
despatched by the Inca, met him with a valuable present 
from that prince, accompanied with an offer of his alliance, 
and assurances of a friendly reception at Caxamalca. Pi- 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 211 

zarro, according to the usual artifice of his countrymen in 
America, pretended to come as the ambassador of a very- 
powerful monarch, and declared that he was now advancing 
with an intention to offer Atahualpa his aid against those ene- 
mies who disputed his title to the throne. 

The Spaniards were allowed to march in tranquillity across 
the sandy desert between St. Michael and Motupe, where 
the most feeble effort of an enemy, added to the unavoidable 
distresses which they suffered in passing through that com- 
fortless region, must have proved fatal to them. From Mo- 
tupe, they advanced towards the mountains which encom- 
pass the low country of Peru, and passed through a defile, so 
narrow and inaccessible, that a few men might have defended it 
against a numerous army. But here likewise, from the same 
inconsiderate credulity of the Inca, the Spaniards met no 
opposition, and took quiet possession of a fort erected for the 
security of that important station. As they now approached 
near to Caxamalca, Atahualpa renewed his professions of 
friendship; and, as an evidence of his sincerity, sent them 
presents of greater value than the former. 

On entering Caxamalca, Pizarro took possession of a large 
court, on one side of which was a house which the Spanish 
historians call a palace of the Inca, and on the other a temple 
of the Sun ; the whole surrounded with a strong rampart, or 
wall of earth. When he had posted his troops in this advan- 
tageous station, he despatched his brother Ferdinand, and 
Hernando Soto, to the camp of Atahualpa, about a league dis- 
tant from the town. He instructed them to confirm a decla- 
ration which he had formerly made, of his pacific disposition, 
and to desire an interview with the Inca, that he might ex- 
plain more fully the intention of the Spaniards in visiting his 
country. They were treated with all the respectful hospitality 
usual amongst the Peruvians, in the reception of their most 
cordial friends ; and Atahualpa promised to visit the Spanish 
commander, the next day, in his quarters. The decent de- 
portment of the Peruvian monarch, the order of his court, 
and the reverence with which his subjects approached his 
person and obeyed his commands, astonished those Spaniards, 
who had never met in America any thing more dignified than 
the petty cazique of a barbarous tribe. But their eyes were 
still more powerfully attracted, by the vast profusion of wealth 
which they observed in the Inca's camp. The rich ornaments 
worn by him and his attendants ; the vessels of gold and siU 



212 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA, 

ver in which the repast offered to them was served ; the mul- 
titude of utensils of every kind, formed of those precious 
metals ; opened prospects far exceeding any idea of opulence 
that a European of the sixteenth century could conceive. 

On their return to Caxamalca, while their minds were yet 
warm with admiration and desire of the wealth which they 
had beheld, they gave such a description of it to their coun- 
trymen, as confirmed Pizarro in a resolution which he had 
already taken. From his own observation of American man- 
ners, during his long service in the new world, as well as 
from the advantages which Cortes had derived from seizing 
Montezuma, he knew of what importance it v/as, to have the 
Inca in his power. For this purpose, he formed a plan, as 
daring as it was perfidious. Notwithstanding the character 
that he had assumed of an ambassador from a powerful mon- 
arch, who courted an alliance with the Inca, and in violation 
of the repeated offers which he had made to him, of his own 
friendship and assistance, he determined to avail himself of 
the unsuspicious simplicity with which Atahualpa relied on 
his professi6ns, and to seize the person of the Inca, during 
the interview to which he had been invited. He divided his 
cavalry into three small squadrons, under the command of his 
brother Ferdinand, Soto, and Benalcazar ; his infantry were 
formed in one body, except twenty of the most tried courage, 
whom he kept near his own person, to support him in the 
dangerous service which he reserved for himself; the artil- 
lery, consisting of two field-pieces, and the cross-bowmen, 
were placed opposite to the avenue by which Atahualpa was 
to approach. All were commanded to keep within the square> 
and not to move until the signal for action was given. 
■p^ ^ ^ Early in the morning, the Peruvian camp was all 

^ * ', in motion. The Inca at length approached. First, 
appeared four-hundred men, in a uniform dress, as harbingers, 
to clear the way before him. He himself sitting on a throne 
or couch, adorned with plumes of various colours, and almost 
covered with plates of gold and silver enriched with precious 
stones, was carried on the shoulders of his principal attend- 
ants. Behind him, came some chief officers of his court, 
carried in the same manner. Several bands of singers and 
dancers accompanied this cavalcade ; and the whole plain was 
covered with troops, amounting to more than thirty-thousand . 
men. 

As the Inca drew near the Spanish quarters, father Vincent 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 213 

Valverde, chaplain to the expedition, advanced with a cruci- 
fix in one hand, and a breviary in the other, and, in a long 
discourse, explained to him the doctrine of the creation, the 
fall of Adam, the incarnation, the sufferings and resurrection 
of Jesus Christ, the appointment of St. Peter as God's vice- 
gerent on earth, the transmission of his apostolic power by 
succession to the popes, and the donation made to the king 
of Castile, by Pope Alexander, of all the regions in the new 
v/orld. In conseqiience of all this, he required Atahualpa 
to embrace the Christian faith, to acknowledge the supreme 
jurisdiction of the pope, and to submit to the king of Castile 
as his lawful sovereign ; promising, if he complied instantly 
with this requisition, that the Castilian monarch would pro- 
tect bis dominions, and permit him to continue in the exer- 
cise of his royal authority; but, if he should imxpiously re- 
fuse to obey this summons, he denounced v/ar against him, 
in his master's name, and threatened him with the most 
dreadful effects of his vengeance. 

This strange harangue, unfolding deep mysteries, and al- 
luding to unknown facts, of which no power of eloquence 
could have conveyed at once a distinct idea to an Indian, was 
so imperfectly translated by an unskilful interpreter, little ac- 
quainted with the idiom of the Spanish tongue, and incapable 
of expressing himself with propriety in the language of the 
Inca, that its general tenor was altogether incomprehensible 
to Atahualpa. Some parts of it, of more obvious meaning, 
filled him with astonishment and indignation. His reply, 
however, was temperate. He began with observing, that he 
was lord of the dominions over which he reigned, by heredi- 
tary succession ; and added, that he could not conceive how 
a foreign priest should pretend to dispose of territories which 
did not belong to him ; that, if such a preposterous grant had 
been made, he, who was the rightful possessor, refused to 
confirm it; that he had no inclination to renounce the reli- 
gious institutions established by his ancestors ; nor would he 
forsake the service of the Sun, the immortal divinity whom 
he and his people revered, in order to worship the God of the 
Spaniards, who was subject to death ; that with respect to 
other matters contained in his discourse, as he had never 
heard of them before, and did not now understand their 
meaning, he desired to know where the priest had learned 
things so extraordinary. " In this book," answered Valverde, 
rieaching out to him his breviary. The Inca opened it eagerly, 



214 mSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

and, turning over the leaves, lifted it to his ear. " This," 
says he, " is silent ; it tells me nothing ;" and threw it with 
disdain to the ground. The enraged monk, running towards 
his countrymen, cried out, " To arms. Christians, to arms ; 
the word of God is insulted ; avenge this profanation on those 
impious dogs !" 

Pizarro, who, during this long conference, had with diffi- 
culty restrained his soldiers, eager to seize the rich spoils of 
which they had now so near a view, immediately gave the 
signal of assault. At once, the martial music sounded, the 
cannon and muskets began to fire, the horse sallied out 
fiercely to the charge, the infantry rushed on sword-in-hand. 
The Peruvians, astonished at the suddenness of an attack 
which they did not expect, and dismayed with the destruc- 
tive effects of the fire-arms, and the irresistible impression 
of the cavalry, fled, with universal consternation, on every 
side, without attempting either to annoy the enemy, or to 
defend themselves, Pizarro, at the head of his chosen band, 
advanced directly towards the Inca ; and, though his nobles 
crowded around him with officious zeal, and fell in numbers 
at his feet, while they vied with each other in sacrificing 
their own lives, that they might cover the sacred person of 
their sovereign, the Spaniards soon penetrated to the royal 
seat ; and Pizarro, seizing the Inca by the arm, dragged him 
to the ground, and carried him as a prisoner to his quarters. 
The fate of the monarch increased the precipitate flight of 
his followers. The Spaniards pursued them in every di- 
rection, and, with deliberate and unrelenting barbarity, con- 
tinued to slaughter wretched fugitives, who never once of- 
fered to resist. The carnage did not cease imtil the close 
of the day. Above four-thousand Peruvians were killed. Not 
a single Spaniard fell, nor was one wounded, except Pizarro 
himself, whose hand was slightly hurt by one of his own sol- 
diers, while struggling eagerly to seize the Inca. 

The plunder of the field was rich, beyond any idea yet 
formed by the Spaniards concerning the wealth of Peru ; and 
they were so transported with the value of the acquisition, 
as well as the greatness of their success, that they passed the 
night in the extravagant exultation natural to indigent ad- 
venturers on so extraordinary a change of fortune. 

At first, the captive monarch could hardly believe a cala- 
mity which he so little expected, to be real. But he soon 
f^\t all the misery of his fate ; and the dejection into whicli^ 



History of south AMEmcA. ^15 

he sunk, was in proportion to the height of grandeur from 
which he had fallen. He offered, as a ransom, what astonished 
the Spaniards, even after all they now knew concerning the 
opulence of his kingdom. The apartment in which he was 
confined was twenty-two feet in length, and sixteen in breadth : 
he undertook to fill it with vessels of gold as high as he could 
reach. Pizarro eagerly acceded to this tempting proposal, 
and a line was drawn on the walls of the chamber, to mark 
the stipulated height to which the treasure was to rise. 

Atahualpa, transported with having obtained some prospect 
of liberty, took measures instantly for fulfilling his part of 
the agreement, by sending messengers to Cuzco, Quito, and 
other places, where gold had been amassed in the largest 
quantities, either for adorning the temples of the gods, or the 
houses of the Inca, to bring what was necessary for complet- 
ing his ransom, directly to Caxamalca. Though Atahualpa 
Was now in the custody of his enemies, yet so much were 
the Peruvians accustomed to respect every mandate issued 
by their sovereign, that his orders were executed with the 
greatest alacrity. Soothed with the hope of recovering his 
liberty by this means, the subjects of the Inca were afraid of 
endangering his life, by forming any other scheme for his 
relief; and, though the force of the empire was still entire, 
no preparations were made, and no army assembled, to avenge 
either their own wrongs, or those of their monarch. The 
Spaniards remained in Caxamalca, tranquil and unmolested. 
Small detachments of their number marched into remote 
provinces of the empire, and instead of meeting any opposi- 
tion, were every where received with marks of the most sub- 
missive respect. Nothing can be a more striking proof of 
this, than that three Spaniards travelled from Caxamalca to 
Cuzco. The distance between them is six-hundred miles. 
In every place throughout this great extent of country, they 
were treated with all the honours paid by the Peruvians to 
their sovereigns, and even to their divinities. Under pretext 
of amassing what was wanting for the ransom of the Inca, they 
demanded the plates of gold, with which the walls of the Tem- 
ple of the Sun, in Cuzco, were adorned ; and, though the priests 
were unwilling to alienate those sacred ornaments, and the 
people refused to violate the shrine of their god, the three 
Spaniards, with their own hands, robbed the temple of apart 
of this valuable treasure ; and, so profound was the reverence 
of the natives for their persons, that, although they beheld 



^16 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

this act of sacrilege with astonishment, they did not attempt 
to prevent or disturb its perpetration. 

Inconsiderable as were those parties, and desirous as Pi- 
^arro might be to obtain some knowledge of the interior 
state of the country, he could not have ventured upon any 
y^ T diminution of his main body, if he had not, about 
this time, received an account of Almagro's 
having landed at St. Michael, with so large a reinforcement, 
as would almost double the number of his followers. The 
arrival of this long expected succour, was not more agreeable 
to the Spaniards, than alarming to the Inca. He saw the 
power of his enemies increase ; and, as he knew neither the 
source whence they derived their supplies, nor the means by 
which they were conveyed to Peru, he could not foresee to 
what a height the inundation that poured in upon his domin- 
- Roo ions might rise- While disquieted with such appre- 
hensions, he learned that some Spaniards, in their 
way to Cuzco, had visited his brother Huascar, in the place 
where he kept him confined, and that the captive prince had 
represented to them the justice of his own cause, andj as an 
inducement to espouse it, had promised them a quantity of 
treasure, much greater than that which Atahualpa had engaged 
to pay for his ransom. If the Spaniards should listen to this 
proposal, Atahualpa perceived his own destruction to be in- 
evitable ; and, suspecting that their insatiable thirst for gold 
would tempt them to lend to it a favourable ear, he deter- 
mined to sacrifice his brother's life, that he might save his. 
own ; and his orders for this purpose were executed, like all 
his other commands, with scrupulous punctuality. 

Meanwhile, Indians daily arrived at Caxamalca, from diffe- 
rent parts of the kingdom, loaded with treasure. A great 
part of the stipulated quantity was now amassed, and Atahu* 
alpa, assured the Spaniards, that the only thing which pre- 
vented the whole from being brought in, was the remoteness 
of the provinces where it was deposited. But piles of gold 
so Vast, presented continually to the view of needy soldiers, 
had so inflamed their avarice, that it was impossible any 
longer to restrain their impatience to obtain possession of 
this rich booty. Orders were given for melting down the 
whole, except some pieces of curious fabric, reserved as a 
present for the emperor. After setting apart a fifth due to 
the crown, and a hundred thousand pesos as a donative to the 
soldiers who arrived with Almagro, there remained one mil- 



V 



mSfORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 217 

lion five-hundred and tv/enty-eight thousand five-hundred 
pesos to Pizarro and his followers. 

There is no example in history, of so sudden an acquisition 
of wealth by military service ; nor was ever a sum, so great, 
divided amongst so small a number of soldiers. Many of 
them having received a recompense for their services far 
beyond their most sanguine hopes^ were so impatient to re- 
tire from fatigue and- danger, in order to spend the remain- 
der of their days in their native country, in ease and opulence, 
that they demanded their discharge with clamorous importu- 
nity. Pizarro, sensible that from such men he could expect 
neither enterprise in action, nor fortitude in suffering ; and 
persuaded that wherever they went, the display of their riches 
would allure adventurers, less opulent but more hardy, to his 
standard ; granted their suit v^thout reluctance, and permitted 
above sixty of them to accompany his brother Ferdinand, 
whom he sent to Spain, with an account of his success, and 
the present destined for the emperor. 

The Spaniards having divided the treasure amassed for the 
Inca's ransom, he insisted that they would fulfil their pro^ 
mise of setting him at liberty. But nothing was further from 
Pizarro's thoughts. During his long service in the new 
world, he hads imbibed those ideas and maxims of his fellow- 
soldiers, which led them to consider its inhabitants as an in- 
ferior race, neither worthy of the name, nor entitled to the 
rights of men. In his compact with Atahualpa, he had no 
other object- than to amuse his captive with such a prospect 
of recovering his liberty, as might induce him to lend all the 
aid of his authority towards collecting the wealth of his kiijg- 
dom. Having now accomplished this, he no longer regarafed 
his plighted faith ; and, at the very time when the credulous 
prince hoped to be replaced on his throne, he had secretly 
resolved to bereave him of life. Many circumstances seem 
to have concurred in prompting him to this action, the most 
criminal and atrocious that stains the Spanish name, amidst 
all the deeds of violence committed in carrying on the con- 
quest of the new world. 

Though Pizarro had seized the Inca, in imitation of the 
conduct of Cortes towards the Mexican monarch, he did not 
possess talent for prosecuting the same artful plan of policy. 
There were accordingly excited between them mutual sus- 
picion and distrust. The strict attention with which it was 
necessary to guard a captive of such importance, greatly in- 
T 



2X8 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

creased the fatigue of military duty. The utility of keeping 
him appeared inconsiderable ; and Pizarro felt him as an in- 
cumbrance, from which he wished to be delivered. 

He began, at length, to be alarmed by accounts of forces 
assembling in the remote provinces of the empire, and sus* 
pected Atahualpa of having issued orders for that purpose. 
The unhappy prince, at the same time, inadvertently con* 
tributed to hasten his own fate. During his confinement, he 
had attached himself, with peculiar affection, to Ferdinand 
Pizarro and Hernando Soto ,* who, as they were persons of 
birth and education superior to the rough adventurers with 
whom they served, were accustomed to behave to the captive 
monarch with more decency and attention. Soothed with 
this respect from persons of so high rank, he delighted in 
their society. But in the presence of the governor, he was 
always uneasy and overawed. This dread soon came to be 
mingled with contempt. Amongst all the European arts, 
what he admired most was that of reading and writing ; and 
he long deliberated with himself, whether he should regard it 
as a natural or an acquired talent. In order to determine this, 
he desired one of the soldiers, who guarded him, to write the 
name of God on the nail of his thumb. This, he showed 
successively to several Spaniards, asking its meaning ; and, to 
his amazement, they all, without hesitation, returned the 
same answer. At length, Pizarro entered, and, on present- 
ing it to him, he blushed, and with some confusion was 
obliged to acknowledge his ignorance. From that moment, 
Atahualpa considered him as a mean person, less instructed 
than his own soldiers ; and he had not address enough to con- 
ceal the sentiments with which this discovery inspired him. 
To be the object of a barbarian's scorn, not only mortified the 
pride of Pizarro^ but excited such resentment in his breast, 
as added force to all the other considerations which prompted 
him to put the Inca to death. 

But, in order to give some colour of justice to this violent 
action ; and that he himself might be exempted from stand- 
ing singly responsible for its commission, Pizarro resolved to 
try the Inca with all the formalities observed in the criminal 
courts of Spain. Pizarro himself, and Almagro, with two 
assistants, were appointed judges, with full power to acquit 
or to condemn ; an attorney-general was named, to conduct 
the prosecution in the king's name ; counsellors were chosen, 
to assist the prisoner in his defence ; and clerks were ordained, 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 2l9 

to record the proceedings of the court. Before this strange 
tribunal, a charge was exhibited, still more amazing. It con- 
sisted of various articles ; that Atahualpa, though of illegiti- 
mate birth, had dispossessed the rightful owner of the throne, 
and usurped the regal power ; that he had put his brother and 
lawful sovereign to death ; that he was an idolater, and had 
not only permitted, but' commanded, the offering of human 
sacrifices ; that he had a great number of concubines ; that, 
since his imprisonment, he had wasted and embezzled the 
royal treasures, which now belonged of right to the conquer- 
ors ; that he had incited his subjects to take arms against the 
Spaniards. On these heads of accusation, so absurd and ludi- 
crous, did this strange court proceed to try the sovereign of 
a great empire, over whom it had no jurisdiction. To judges 
predetermined in their opinion, any evidence is sufficient. 
They pronounced Atahualpa guilty, and condemned him to 
be burned alive. Friar Valverde prostituted the authority 
of his sacred function, to confirm this sentence, and by Ms 
signature warranted it to be just. Astonished at his fate, 
Atahualpa endeavoured to avert it, by tears, by promises, and 
by entreaties, that he might be sent to Spain, where a mon- 
arch would be the arbiter of his lot. But pity never touched 
the unfeeling heart of Pizarro. He ordered him to be led 
instantly to execution ; and, what added to the bitterness of 
his last moments, the sanae monk who had just ratified his 
doom, offered to console, and attempted to convert him. The 
most powerful argument employed by Valverde, to prevail with 
him to embrace the christian faith, was a promise of mitiga- 
tion in his punishment. The dread of a cruel death extorted 
from the trembling victim a desire of receiving baptism. 
The ceremony was performed, and Atahualpa, instead of 
being burned, was strangled at the stake ! 

Happily for the credit of the Spanish nation, even amongst 
the profligate adventurers which it sent forth to conquer and 
desolate the new world, there were persons who retained 
some tincture of generosity and honour. Several officers^ 
and amongst those, some of the greatest reputation and most 
respectable families in the service, not only remonstrated^, 
but protested against this, measure of their general, as dis- 
graceful to their country, as repugnant to every maxim of 
equity, as a violation of public faith, and a usurpation of ju- 
risdiction over an independent monarch, to which they had 
no title, 



220 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

On the death of Atahualpa, Pizarro invested one of hi& 
sons with the ensigns of royalty ; hoping that a young man 
without experience might prove a more passive instrument 
in his hands, than an ambitious monarch, who had been ac- 
customed to independent command. The people of Cuzco, 
and the adjacent country, acknowledged Manco Capac, a 
brother of Huascar, as Inca. But neither possessed the au- 
thority which belonged to a sovereign of Peru. The violent 
convulsions into which the empire had been thrown, first by 
the civil war between the two brothers, and then by the in- 
vasion of the Spaniards, had not only deranged the order of 
the Peruvian government, but almost dissolved its frame ;: 
and the people, in several provinces, broke out into the most 
licentious excesses. So many descendants of the Sun, after 
being treated with the utmost indignity, had been cut off by 
Atahualpa, that not only their influence in the state di- 
minished with their number, but the accustomed reverence 
for that sacred race sensibly decreased. In consequence of 
this st^te of things, ambitious men, in different parts of the 
empire, aspired to independent authority, and usurped juris- 
diction to which they had no title. The general who com- 
manded for Atahualpa in Quito, seized the brother and chil- 
dren of his master, put them to a cruel death, and, disclaiming 
any connexion wi|h either of the Incas, endeavoured to esta- 
blish a separate kingdom for himself. 

The Spaniards, with pleasure, beheld the spirit of discord 
diffusing itself, and the vigour of government relaxing amongst 
the Peruvians. Pizarro no longer hesitated to advance to- 
wards Cuzco, and he had received so considerable reinforce- 
ments, that he could venture, with little danger, to penetrate 
so far into the interior of the country. The account of the 
wealth acquired at Caxamalca, operated as he had foreseen. 
No sooner had his brother Ferdinand, with the officers and 
soldiers to whom he had given their discharge after the par- 
tition of the Inca's ransom, arrived at Panama, and displayed 
their riches in the view of their astonished countrymen, than 
fame spread the account with such exaggeration through all 
the Spanish settlements on the South Sea, that the governors 
of Guatimala, Panama, and Nicaragua, could hardly restrain 
the people under their jurisdiction, from abandoning their 
possessions, and crowding to that inexhaustible source of 
wealth which seemed to be opened in Peru. In spite of every 
check and regulation ^ so great numbers resorted thither, that 



mSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 221 

Pizarra began his march at the head of five-hundred men,, 
after leaving a considerable garrison at St. Michael, under the 
command of Benalcazar. The Peruvians had assembled some 
large bodies of troops, to oppose his progress. Several fierce 
encounters happened. But they terminated like all the ac- 
tions in America ; a few Spaniards were killed or wounded, 
and the natives were put to flight with incredible slaughter. 
At length, Pizarro forced his way to Cuzco ; took quiet posses- 
sion of that capital ; and found riches there, which, even after 
all that the natives had carried off and concealed, exceeded in 
value what had been received as Atahualpa's ransom. 

During the march to Cuzco, that son of Atahualpa whom 
Pizarro treated as Inca, died ; and, as the Spaniards had sub- 
stituted no person in his place, the title of Manco Capac 
seems to have been universally recognised. 
- -04 By this time, Ferdinand Pizarro had landed in Spain. 
The immense quantities of gold and silver which he 
imported, filled the kingdom with no less astonishment than 
they had excited in Panama and the adjacent provinces. Pi- 
zarro was received by the emperor with the attention due to 
the bearer of a present, so rich, as to exceed any idea which 
the Spaniards had formed concerning the value of their ac- 
quisitions in America, even after they had been ten years 
masters of Mexico. In recompense of his brother's services, 
his authority was confirmed, with new powers and privileges, 
and the addition of seventy leagues, extending along the 
coast, to the southward of territory granted in his former pa- 
tent. Almagro received the honours which he had so long 
desired. The title of adelantado, or governor, was conferred 
upon him, with jurisdiction over two-hundred leagues of coun- 
try, stretching beyond the southern limits of the province al- 
lotted to Pizarro. Ferdinand himself did not go unrewarded. 
He was admitted into the military order of St. Jago, a dis- 
tinction always acceptable to a Spanish gentleman, and soon 
set out on his return to Peru, accompanied by many persons 
of higher rank than had yet served in that country. 

Some account of his negotiations reached Peru before he 
arrived there himself* Almagra no sooner learned that he 
had obtained the royal grant of an independent government, 
than, pretending^ that Cuzco,, the imperial residence of the 
Incas, lay within it& boundaries, he attempted to render him- 
self master of that important station. Juan and Gonzalez 
Pizarro prepared to oppose him. Each of the contending 
t2 



22^ HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

parties was supported by powerful adherents, and the dispute 
was on the point of being terminated by the sword, when 
Francis Pizarro arrived in the capital. The reconciliation 
between him and Almagro had never been cordial. The 
treachery of Pizarro, in engrossing to himself all the honours 
and emoluments, which ought to have been divided with his 
associate, was always present in both their thoughts. To 
each of them, was attached a small band of interested de- 
pendents, who, with the malicious art peculiar to such men, 
heightened their suspicions, and magnified every appearance 
of offence. But, with all those seeds of enmity in their 
minds, and thus assiduously cherished, each was so thoroughly 
acquainted with the abilities and courage of his rivals that 
they equally dreaded the consequences of an open rupture. 
The fortunate arrival of Pizarro at Cuzco, and the address 
mingled with firmness, which he manifested in his expostu- 
lations with Almagro and his partisans, averted that evil, for 
the present. A new reconciliation took place ; the chief ar- 
ticle of which was, that Almagro should attempt the conquest 
of Chili ; and, if he did not find in that province an esta- 
blishment adequate to his merit and expectations, Pizarro, 
by way of indemnification, should yield to him a part of Peru. 
This new agreement, tliough confirmed with the same sacred 
solemnities as their first contract, Avas observed v/ith as little 
fidelity. 

Soon after he concluded this important transaction, Pizarro 
marched back to the countries on the sea-coast, and, as he now 
enjoyed an interval of tranquility, undisturbed by any enemy, 
either Spanish or Indian, he applied, himself with that perse- 
vering ardour which distinguishes his character, to introduce 
a form of regular gavernment into the extensive provinces 
subject to his authority. He divided the country into various 
districts ; he appointed proper magistrates to preside in each ; 
and established regulations concerning the administration of 
justice, the collection of the royal revenue, the working of 
the mines, and the treatment of the Indians. He considered 
himself as laying the foundation of a great empire, and de- 
liberating long, and with much solicitude, in what place he 
should fix the seat of government. Cuzco, the imperial city 
of the Incas, was situated in the corner of the empire, above 
four-hundred miles from the sea, and much farther from Qui- 
to; a province, respecting the value of which, he had formed 
9, high idea. No other settlement of the Peruvians was so 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 223' 

considerable as to merit the name of a town, or to allure the 
Spaniards to fix their residence in it. But, in marching 
through the country, Pizarro had been struck with the beauty 
and fertility of the valley of Rimac, one of the most exten- 
sive and best cultivated in Peru. There, on the banks of a 
small river, of the same name with the vale which it waters 
and enriches, at the distance of six miles from Callao, the 
r ,Q -.Kor most commodious harbour in the Pacific Ocean, 
Jan. i», lOdo. ^^ foun^e^j a city, which he destined to be the 
capital of his government. He gave it the name of Ciudad 
de los Reyes, either from the circumstance of having laid the 
first stone at that season when the church celebrates the fes- 
tival of the Three Kings : or, as is more probable, in honour 
of Juana and Charles, the joint sovereigns of Castile. This 
name it still retains amongst the Spaniards, in all legal and 
formal deeds ; but it is better known to foreigners by that of 
Lima, a corruption of the ancient appellation of the valley 
in which it is situated. Under his inspection, the buildings 
advanced so rapidly, that it soon assumed the form of a city, 
which, by a magnificent palace that he erected for himself, 
and by the stately houses built by several of his ofiicers, gave, 
even in its infancy, some indication of its subsequent gran- 
deur. 

In consequence of what had been agreed with Pizarro, Al- 
magro began his march towards Chili ; and, as he possessed, 
in an eminent degree, the virtues most admired by soldiers, — 
boundless liberality and fearless courage — his standard was 
followed by five.-hundred-and-seventy men, the greatest body 
of Europeans that had hitherto been assembled in Peru.^ 
From impatience to finish the expedition, or from that con- 
tempt of hardship and danger acquired by all the Spaniards 
who had served long in America ; Almagro, instead of ad- 
vancing through the level country on the coast, chose to. 
march across the mountains, by a route that was shorter, in- 
deed; but almost impracticable. In this attempt, his troops 
were exposed to every calamity which men can suffer, from 
fatigue, from famine, and from the rigour of the climate, in 
those elevated regions of the torrid zone, where the degree 
of cold is hardly inferior to what is felt within the polar cir- 
cle. Many of them perished ; and the survivors, when they 
descended into the fertile plains of Chili, had new difficul- 
ties to encounter. They found there a race of men very dif- 
ferent from the people of Peru ; intrepid, hardy, independent ^ 



*22^4 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

and in their bodily constitution, as well as vigour of spirify 
nearly resembling the warlike tribes in North America- 
Though filled with wonder at the first appearance of the Spa- 
niards, and still more astonished at the operations of the ca- 
valry, and the effects of their fire-arms, the Chilese soon re- 
covered from their surprise, so as not only to defend them- 
selves with obstinacy, but to attack their new enemies with 
more determined fierceness than any American nation had 
hitherto discovered. The Spaniards, however, continued to 
penetrate into the country, and collected considerable quan- 
tities of gold; but they were so far from thinking of making 
any settlement amidst so formidable neighbours, that, notwith- 
standing all the experience and valour of their leader, the 
final issue of the expedition still remained extremely dubious, 
when they were recalled from it by an unexpected revolution 
in Peru. 

So many adventurers had flocked to Peru, from every Spa- 
nish colony in America, and all with so high expectations of 
at once accumulating independent fortunes, that, to men pos- 
sessed with notions so extravagant, any mention of acquiring 
wealth gradually, and by schemes of patient industry, would 
have been not only a disappointment, but an insult. In order 
to find occupation for men who could not with safety be al- 
lowed to remain inactive, Pizarro encouraged some of the 
most distinguished officers who had lately joined himy to in- 
vade different provinces of the empire, not hitherto visited 
by the Spaniards. For this purpose, several large bodies were 
formed, and, about the time that Almagro set out for Chili, 
they marched into remote districts of the country. No soon- 
er did Manco Capac, the Inca, observe the inconsiderate se- 
curity of the Spaniards in thus dispersing their troops, and 
that only a handful of soldiers remained in Cuzco, under Juan 
and Gonzalez Pizarro, than he thought that the happy period 
had at length arrived, for vindicating his own rights, for 
avenging the wrongs of his country, and extirpating its op- 
pressoi's. Though strictly watched by the Spaniards, who al- 
lowed him to reside in the palace of his ancestors at Cuzco, 
he found means of communicating his scheme to the persons 
who were to be intrusted with its execution. 
■^n^n After some unsuccessful attempts of the Inca ta 
* make his escape, Ferdinand Pizarro happening to ar- 
rive at that time in Cuzco, he obtained permission from him 
to attend a great festival, which was to be celebrated a few 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 225 

leagues from the capital. Under the pretext of that solemn- 
ity, the great men of the empire were assembled. As soon as 
the Inca joined them, the standard of war was erected ; and 
in a short time all the fighting men, from the confines of Qui- 
to to the frontier of Chili, were in arms. Many Spaniards, 
living securely on the settlements allotted them, were massa- 
cred. Several detachments, as they marched carelessly 
through a country which seemed to be tamely submissive to 
their dominion, were cut off, to a man. An army, amount- 
ing (if we may believe the Spanish writers) to two-hundred- 
thousand men,, attacked Cuzco, which the three brothers en- 
.deavoured to defend with only one-hundred-and-seventy 
Spaniards. Another formidable body invested Lima, and 
kept the governor closely besieged. There was no longer 
any communication betv/een the two cities ; the numerous 
forces of the Peruvians, spreading over the country, inter- 
cepted every messenger ; and, as the parties in Cuzco and 
Lima were equally unacquainted with the fate of their coun- 
trymen, each foreboded the worst concerning tlie other, and 
imagined that they themselves were the only persons who 
had survived the general extinction of the Spanish name in 
Peru. 

It v/as at Cuzco, where the Inca commanded in person, 
that the Peruvians made their chief effort. During nine 
months, they carried on the siege with incessant ardour, and 
in various forms ; and though they displayed not the same 
undaunted ferocity as the Mexican warriors, they conducted 
some of their operations in a manner which discovered greater 
sagacity, and a genius more susceptible of improvement in 
the military art. They not only observed the advantages 
which the Spaniards derived from their discipline and their 
weapons, but they endeavoured to imitate the former, ancj 
turn the latter against them. They armed a considerable 
body of their bravest warriors with the swords, the spears, and 
bucklers, which they had taken from the Spanish soldiers, 
whom they had cut off in different parts of the country. 
These, they endeavoured to marshal in that regular compact 
order, to which experience had taught them that the Spa- 
niards were indebted for their irresistible force in action. 
Some appeared in the field with Spanish muskets, and had 
acquired skill and resolution enough to use themi. A few of 
the boldest, amongst whom was the Inca himself, were mount- 
ed on the horses which they had taken, and advanced briskly 



226 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

to the charge, like Spanish cavaliers, with their lances in the 
rest. The Peruvians not only imitated the military art of the 
Spaniards, but had recourse to devices of their own. As the 
cavalry were the chief object of their terror, they endeav- 
oured to render them incapable of acting by means of a long 
thong, with a stone fastened to each end. This, when thrown 
by a skilful hand, twisted about the horse and his rider, and 
entangled them, so as to obstruct their motions. Another 
instance of the ingenuity of the Peruvians, deserves to be 
mentioned. By turning a river out of its channel, they over- 
flowed a valley, in which a body of the enemy was posted, 
so suddenly, that it was with the utmost difficulty the Spa- 
niards escaped. It was more by their numbers, however, 
than by imperfect essays to imitate European arts, and to 
employ European arms, that the Peruvians annoyed the Spa- 
niards. Notwithstanding the valour, heightened by despair, 
with which the three brothers defended Cuzco, Manco Capac 
recovered possession of one half of his capital ; and, in their 
various efforts to drive him out, the Spaniards lost Juan Pi- 
zarro, the best beloved of all the brothers, together with some 
other persons of note. Worn out by the fatigue of inces- 
sant duty, distressed by want of provisions, despairing of 
being able any longer to resist an enemy, whose numbers 
daily increased, the soldiers became impatient to abandon 
Cuzco, in hopes either of joining their countrymen, if any of 
them yet survived, or of forcing their way to the sea, and 
finding some means of escaping from a country which had 
been so fatal to the Spanish name. While they were brood- 
ing over those desponding thoughts, which their officers la- 
boured in vain to 'dispel, Almagro appeared suddenly in the 
neighbourhood of Cuzco. 

The accounts transmitted to Almagro, concerning the 
general insurrection of the Peruvians, were such as would 
have induced him, without hesitation, to relinquish the con- 
quest of Chili, and hasten to the aid of his countrymen. But 
in this resolution, he was confirmed by a motive less gene- 
rous, but more interesting. By the same messenger who 
brought him intelligence of the Inca's revolt, he received the 
royal patent, creating him governor of Chili, and defining 
the limits of his jurisdiction. On considering its tenor, he 
deemed it manifest, beyond contradiction, that Cuzco lay 
within the boundaries of his government, and he was equally 
^Qlicitous to prevent the Peruvians from recovering posses-* 



i 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 22f 

sion of their capital, and to wrest it out of the hands of the 
Pizarros. From impatience to accomplish both, he ventured 
to return by a new route ; and, in marching through the sandy 
plains on the coast, he suffered from heat and drought, cala- 
mities of a new species, hardly inferior to those in which he 
had been involved by cold and famine on the summits of the 
Andes. 

^ Ko^- His arrival at Cuzco was in a critical moment. The 
Spaniards and Peruvians fixed their eyes upon him 
with equal solicitude. The former, as he did not study to 
conceal his pretensions, were at a loss whether to welcome 
him as a deliverer, or to take precautions against him as an 
enemy. The latter, knowing the points in conteat between 
him and his countrymen, flattered themselves th'4.t they had 
more to hope than to dread from his operations. Almagro 
himself, unacquainted with the detail of the events which 
had happened in his absence, and solicitous to learn .the pre- 
cise posture of affairs^ advanced towards the capital slowly, 
and with great circumspection. Various negotiations, with 
both parties, commenced. The Inca conducted them, on his 
part, with much address. At first, he endeavoured to gain 
the friendship of Almagro ; and, after many fruitless over- 
tures, despairing of any cordial union with a Spaniard, he 
attacked him, by surprise, with a numerous body of chosen 
troops. But the Spanish discipline and valour maintained 
their wonted superiority. The Peruvians were repulsed with 
so great slaughter, that a great part of their army dispersed, 
and Almagro proceeded to the gates of Cuzco without inter- 
ruption. 

The Pizarros, as they had no longer to make head against 
the Peruvians, directed all their attention towards their new 
enemy, and took measures to obstruct his entry into the capital. 
Prudence, however, restrained both parties, for some time, 
from turning their arms against each other, while surrounded 
by common enemies, who would rejoice in the mutual 
slaughter. Different schemes of accommodation were pro- 
posed. Each endeavoured to deceive the other, or to cor- 
rupt his followers. The generous, open, affable temper of 
Almagro, gained many adherents of the Pizarros, who were 
disgusted with their harsh domineering manners. En- 
couraged by this defection, he advanced towards the city by 
night, surprised the sentinels, or was admitted by them, and, 
investing the house where the two brothers resided, com- 



$2g HISTORY OF SOUTH AMlERICA. 

pelled them, after an obstinate defence, to surrender at dis^- 
cretion. Almagro's claim of jurisdiction over Cuzco was 
universally acknowledged, and a form of administration esta- 
blished in his name. 

Only two or three persons were killed, in this first act of 
civil hostility; but it was soon followed by scenes more 
bloody. 

Pizarro was still unacquainted with all the interesting 
events which had happened near Cuzco. Accounts of Al- 
magro's return, of the loss of the capital, of the death of one 
brother, of the imprisonment of the other two, and of the 
defeat of Alvarado, were brought to him at once. Such a 
tide of misfortunes almost overwhelmed a spirit which had 
continued firm and erect under the rudest shocks of adversity. 
But the necessity of attending to his own safety, as well as 
th^ desire of revenge, preserved him from sinking under it» 
He took measures for both, with his usual sagacity. As he 
had the command of the sea-coast, and expected conside- 
rable supplies, both of men and military stores, it was no less 
his interest to gain time, and to avoid an action, than it was 
that of Almagro to precipitate operations, and bring the con* 
test to a speedy issue. He had recourse to arts formerly 
practised by him with success, and Almagro was again weak 
enough to suffer himself to be amused with a prospect of 
terminating their diflferences by some amicable accommoda- 
tion. By varying his overtures, as often as it suited his pur- 
pose, Pizarro dexterously protracted the negotiation to so 
great a length, that, though every day was precious to Alma- 
gro, several months elapsed without coming to any final 
agreement. While the attention of Almagro, and of the 
officers with whom he consulted, was occupied in detecting 
and eluding the fraudulent intentions of the governor, Gon- 
zalo Pizarro and Alvarado found means to corrupt the sol- 
diers to whose custody they were committed, and not only 
made their escape themselves, but persuaded sixty of the men 
who formally guarded them, to accompany them in their flight* 
Fortune having thus delivered one of his brothers, the gov- 
ernor scrupled not at one act of perfidy more, to procure 
the release of the other. He proposed, that every point in 
controversy between Almagro and himself should be sub- 
mitted to the decision of their sovereign ; that, until his award 
was known, each should retain undisturbed possession of 
whatever part of the country he now occupied ; that Ferdi* 



HISTORY OF SOUTH A]\IERICA. 229 

iiand Pizarro should be set at liberty, and return Instantly to 
Spain, together with the officers, whom Almagro proposed to 
send thither to represent the justness of his claims. Obvious 
as was the design of Pizarro in those propositions, and fa- 
miliar as his artifices might now have been to his opponent ; 
Almagro, with a credulity approaching to infatuation, relied 
on his sincerity, and concluded an agreement on these terms. 
The moment that Ferdinand Pizarro recovered his liberty, 
the governor, no longer fettered in his operations by anxiety 
about his brother's life, threw off every disguise which his 
concern for it had obliged him to assume. The treaty was 
forgotten ; pacific and conciliating measures were no more 
mentioned ; it was in the field, he openly declared, and not 
in the cabinet ; by arms^ and not by negotiation ; that it must 
now be determined who should be master of Peru. The 
rapidity of his preparations suited so decisive a resolution. 
Seven-hundred men were soon ready to march towards Cuzco. 
The command of these was given to his two brothers, in 
whom he could perfectly confide for the execution of his most 
violent schemes, as they were not only urged on by the en- 
mity flowing from the rivalship between their family and 
Almagro, but animated with the desire of vengeance, excited 
by a recollection of their own recent disgrace and sufierings*. 
After an unsuccessful attempt to cross the mountains in the 
direct road between Lima and Cuzco, they marched towards 
the south, along the coast, as far as Nasca, and then turning 
to the left, penetrated through the defiles in that branch of 
the Andes which lay between them and the capital. Alma- 
gro, instead of hearkening to some of his officers, who advised 
him to attempt the defence of those difficult passes-, waited 
the approach of the enemy in the plain of Cuzco. Two rea* 
sons Seem to have induced him to take this resolution. His 
followers amounted hardly to five-hundred, and he was afraid 
of weakening so feeble a body, by sending any detachment 
towards the mountains. His cavalry far exceeded that of the 
adverse party, both in number and discipline, and it was only 
in an open country that he could avail himself of that advan- 
tage. 

,KOQ The Pizarros advanced without any obstruction, 
but what arose from the nature of the desert and hor- 
rid regions through which they marched. As soon as they 
reached the plain, both factions were equally impatient to 
bring this long-protracted contest to an issue. The conflict 
U 



2'80 fflSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

was fierce, and maintained by each party with equal courage* 
On the side of Almagro, were more veteran soldiers, and a 
larger proportion of cavalry ; but these were counterbalanced 
by Pizarro's superiority in numbers, and by two companies 
of well-disciplined musketeers, which, on receiving an ac- 
count of the insurrection of the Indians, the emperor had 
sent from Spain. As the use of fire-arms was not frequent 
amongst the adventurers in America, hastily equipped for 
service, at their own expense, this small band of soldiers, 
regularly trained and armed, was a novelty in Peru, and de- 
cided the fate of the day. Wherever it advanced, the weight 
of a heavy and well-sustained fire bore down before it both 
horse and foot ; and Orgognez, while he endeavoured to rally 
and animate his troops, having received a dangerous wound, 
the rout became general. The barbarity of the conquerors 
stained the glory which they acquired by this complete vic- 
tory. The violence of civil rage hurried on some to slaugh- 
ter their countrymen with indiscriminate cruelty ; the mean- 
ness of private revenge instigated others to single out 
individuals as the objects of their vengeance. Orgognez and 
several officers of distinction were massacred in cold blood ; 
above a hundred-and-forty soldiers fell in the field ; and Al- 
magro, endeavouring to save himself by flight, was taken 
prisoner, and guarded with the strictest vigilance* 

The Indians, instead of executing the resolution which 
they had formed, of attacking whichever party remained mas- 
ter of the field, retired quietly after the battle was over ; and, 
in the history of the neW world, there is not a more striking 
instance of the wonderful ascendance acquired by the Spa- 
niards over its inhabitants, than, that after seeing one of the 
contending parties ruined and dispersed, and the other 
weakened and fatigued, they had not courage to fall upon 
their enemies. When fortune presented an opportunity of at- 
tacking them with such advantage. 

Almagro remained for several months in custody, under 
all the anguish of suspense. For, although his doom was 
determined by the Pizarros, from the moment that he fell 
into their hands, prudence constrained them to defer gratify- 
ing their vengeance, until the soldiers who had served under 
him, as well as several of their own followers in whom they 
could not perfectly confide, had left Cuzco. As soon as they 
had set out upon their different expeditions, Almagro was 
impeached of treason, formally tried, and condemned to die* 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 231 

He was strangled in prison, and afterwards publicly be- 
headed. He suffered in the seventy-fifth year of his age, 
and left only one son, by an Indian woman, whom, though at 
that time a prisoner at Lima, he named as successor to his 
government, pursuant to a power which had been granted 
him by Charles V. 

As, during the civil dissensions in Peru, all intercourse 
with Spain was suspended, the detail of the extraordinary 
transactions which occurred there, did not soon reach the 
court. Unfortunately for the victorious faction, the first in- 
telligence was brought thither by some of Almagro's officers, 
who left the country on the ruin of their cause ; and they 
related what had happened, with every circumstance unfa- 
vourable to Pizarro and his brothers. Their ambition, their 
breach of the most solemn engagements, their violence and 
cruelty, were painted with all the malignity and exaggeration 
of party hatred. Ferdinand Pizarro, who arrived soon after- 
wards, and appeared in court with extraordinary splendour, 
endeavoured to efface the impression made by those accusa- 
tions, and to justify his brother and himself, by representing 
Almagro as the aggressor. The emperor and his ministers, 
though they could not pronounce Avhich of the contending 
factions was most criminal, clearly discerned the fatal ten- 
dency of their dissensions. It was obvious, that, while the 
leaders, intrusted with the conduct of the two infant colonies, 
employed the arms which should have been turned against 
the common enemy, in destroying one another, all the atten- 
tion to the public good must cease, and there was reason to 
dread, that the Indians might take advantage of this disunion 
of the Spaniards, and extirpate both the victors and the van- 
-1 e^QQ quished. Nothing, therefore, remained, but to send 
a person to Peru, vested with extensive and discre- 
tionary power, who, after viewing deliberately the posture of 
affairs with his own eyes, and inquiring, upon the spot, into 
the conduct of the different leaders, should be authorised to 
establish the government in that form which he deemed most 
conducive to the interest of the parent state, and the welfare 
of the colony. The man selected for this important charge, 
was Christoval Vaca de Castro, a judge in the court of royal 
audience at Valladolid ; whose abilities, integrity, and firm- 
ness, justified the choice. His instructions, though ample, 
were not such as to fetter him in his operations. According 
to the different aspect of affairs, he had power to take upon, 



232 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA, 

him different characters. If he found the governor still alive^ 
he was to assume only the title of judge, to maintain the 
appearance of acting in concert with him, and to guard against 
giving any just cause of offence to a man who had merited 
so highly of his country. But if Pizarro were dead, he was 
intrusted with a commission that he might then produce, by 
which he was appointed his successor in the government of 
Peru. This attention to Pizarro, however, seems to have 
been excited rather by the dread of his power, than by any 
approbation of his measures ; for, at the very time that the 
court seemed solicitous not to irritate him, his brother Fer- 
dinand was arrested a* Madrid, and confined to a prison, 
where he remained above twenty years. 
T 540 While Vaca de Castro was preparing for his voyage, 
events of great moment happened in Peru. The gov- 
ernor, considering himself, upon the death of Almagro, as 
the unrivaled possessor of that vast empire, proceeded to 
parcel out its territories amongst the conquerors : and, had this 
division been made with any degree of impartiality, the ex- 
tent of country which he had to bestov/, was sufficient to 
have gratified his friends, and to have gained his enemies. 
But Pizarro conducted this transaction, not with the equity 
and candour of a judge, attentive to discover and reward 
merit, but with the illiberal spirit of a party leader. Large 
districts, in parts of the country most cultivated and populous^ 
were set apart as his own property, or granted to his brothers, 
his adherents, and favourites. To others, lots less valuable 
and inviting were assigned. The followers of Alm.agro, 
amongst whom were many of the original adventurers, to 
whose valour and perseverance Pizarro was indebted for his 
success, were totally excluded from any portion in those 
lands, towards the acquisition of which they had so largely 
contributed. All who were disappointed in their expecta- 
tion, exclaimed loudly against the rapaciousness and partiality 
of the governor. The partisans of Almagro murmured in 
secret, and meditated revenge. 

Rapid as had been the progress of the Spaniards in South 
America, since Pizarra landed in Peru, their avidity of do- 
minion was not yet satisfied. The officers to whom Ferdi- 
nand Pizarro had given the command of different detach- 
ments, penetrated into several new provinces, and made 
discoveries and conquests which not only extended their 
laiawledge of the country, but added considerably to the ter- 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 333 

ritories of Spain in the new world. Pedro de Valdivia re- 
sumed Almagro's scheme of invading Chili, and, notwith- 
standing- the fortitude of the natives in defending their 
possessions, made such progress in the conquest of the coun- 
try, that he founded the city of St. Jago, and gave a beginning 
to the establishment of the Spanish dominion in that province. 
But, of all the enterprises undertaken about this period, that 
of Gonzalo Pizarro was the most remarkable. The governor,, 
who seems to have resolved that no person in Peru should 
possess any station of distinguished eminence or authority, 
but those of his own family, had deprived Benalcazar, the 
conqueror of Quito, of his command in that kingdom, and 
appointed his brother Gonzalo to assume the government. 
He instructed him to attempt the discovery and conquest of 
the country, to the east of the Andes, which ^according td 
the information of the Indians, abounded with cinnamon and- 
other valuable spices. Gonzalo, not inferior to any of his 
brothers in courage, and no less ambitious of acquiring dis- 
tinction, eagerly engaged in this difficult service. He set 
out from Quito at the head of three-hundred-and-forty sol- 
diers, nearly one half of whom w^ere horsemen, with four- 
thousand Indians to carry their provisions. In forcing their 
way through the defiles, or over the ridges of the Andes,, 
excess of cold and fatigue, to neither of which they had been 
accustomed, proved fatal to the greater part of their wretched 
attendants. The Spaniards, though more robust, and inured 
to a variety of climates, suffered considerably, and lost some 
men ; but, w^hen they descended into the low country, their 
distress increased. During two months, it rained incessantly, 
without any interval of fair weather, long enough to dry their 
clothes. The immense plains upon which they were now 
entering, either altogether without inhabitants, or occupied 
by the rudest and least industrious tribes in the new world, 
yielded little subsistence. They could not advance a step, 
without cutting a road through woods, or making it through 
marshes. So incessant toil, and continual scarcity of food, 
seem more than sufficient to have exhausted and dispirited 
any troops. But the fortitude and perseverance of the Spa- 
niards, in the sixteenth century, were insuperable. Allured 
by frequent but false accounts of rich countries before them,, 
they persisted in struggling on, until they reached the banks 
of the Coca or Napo, one of the large rivers, the waters of 
which pour into the Maragnon, and contribute to its gran^ 
V 2. 



2$4 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

deur. There, with infinite labour, they built a bark, whw 
they expected would prove of great utility, in conveying 
them over rivers, in procuring provisions, and in exploring 
the -country. This was manned with fifty soldiers, under the 
command of Francis Orellana, the officer next in rank to 
Pizarro. The stream carried them down with such rapidity, 
that they were soon far a-h^ad of their countrymen, who fol- 
lowed slowly, and with difficulty, by land.* 

At this distance from his commander, Orellana, a young 
man of an aspiring mind, began to fancy himself indepen- 
dent, and, transported with the predominant passion of the 
age, he formed the scheme of distinguishing himself as a dis« 
coverer, by following the course of the Maragnon, until it 
joined the ocean, and by surveying the vast regions through 
which it flows. This scheme of Orellana's was as bold as it 
was treacherous. While he is chargeable with the guilt of 
having violated his duty to his commander, and with having 
abandoned his fellow-soldiers in a pathless desert, where they 
had hardly any hopes of success, or even of safety, but what 
were founded on the service which they expected from the 
bark; his crime is, in some measure, balanced, by the 
glory of having ventured upon a navigation of nearly two- 
thousand leagues, through unknown nations, in a vessel 
hastily constructed by very unskilful hands, without pro- 
visions, without a compass or a pilot. But his courage and 
alacrity supplied every defect. Committing himself fear- 
lessly to the guidance of the stream, the Napo bore him 
along to the south, until he reached the great channel of the 
Maragnon. Turning with it towards the coast, he held on 
his course in that direction. He made frequent descents* 
on both sides of the river ; sometimes seizing, by force of 
arms, the provisions of the fierce savages seated on its banks ; 
and sometimes procuring a supply of food by a friendly inter- 
course with more gentle tribes. After a long series of dan- 
gers, which he encountered with amazing fortitude, and of 
distresses which he supported with no less magnanimity, he 
reached the ocean, where new perils awaited him. These 
he likewise surmounted, and at length arrived safe at the 
Spanish settlement in the island of Cubagua; whence he 
sailed to Spain. 

The vanity natural to travellers who visit regions unknown 
to the rest of mankind, and the art of an adventurer, solici- 
tous to magnify his own merit, concurred in prompting him; 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 235 

to mingle an extraordinary proportion of the marvellous in 
the narrative of his voyage. He pretended to have discover- 
ed nations so rich, that the roofs of their temples were cover- 
ed with plates of gold ; and described a republic of women, 
so warlike and powerful, as to have extended their dominion 
over a considerable tract of the fertile plains which he had 
visited. Extravagant as those tales were, they gave rise to 
an opinion, that a region abounding with gold, distinguished 
by the name of El Dorado ; and a community of Amazons, 
were to be found in this part of the new world ; and such is 
the propensity of mankind to believe what is wonderful, that 
it has been slowly and with difficulty that reason and obseiv- 
ation have exploded those fables. But, even when stripped 
of every romantic embellishment, it deserves to be recorded, 
not only as one of the most memorable occurrences in that 
adventurous age, but as the first event that led to any certain 
knowledge of the extensive countries which stretch eastward 
from the Andes to the ocean. 

That hazardous undertaking, to which Orellana had been 
prompted by ambition, was, at a subsequent period,* under- 
taken by Madame Godin des Odonais, from conjugal aifec- 
tion. The narrative of the hardships which she suffered, of 
the dangers to which she was exposed, and of the disasters 
which befel her, is one of the rapst singular and affecting sto- 
ries in any language ; exhibiting, in her conduct, a striking 
picture of the fortitude which distinguishes the one sex, 
mingled with the sensibility and tenderne^ peculiar to the 
other. 

No words can describe the consternation of Pizarro, when 
he did not find the bark at the confluence of the Napo and 
Maragnon, where he had ordered Orellana to wait for him. 
He would not allow himself to suspect, that a man, whom he 
had entrusted with so important a command, could be so base 
and so unfeeling, as to desert him at such a juncture ; but, 
imputing his absence from the place of rendezvous to some 
unknown accident, he advanced above fifty leagues along the 
banks of the Maragnon, expecting every moment to see the 
I P)4i ^^^^ appear with a supply of provisions. At length, 
he overtook an officer whom Orellana had left to per- 
ish in the desert, because he had the courage to remonstrate 
against his perfidy. From him, he learnt the extent of Orel« 

« A.D. 1769. 



236 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

lana's crime, and his followers perceived, at once, their own 
desperate situation, when deprived of their only resource. 
The spirit of the stoutest hearted veteran sunk within him, 
and all demanded instantly to be led back. Pizarro, though 
he assumed an appearance of tranquility, did not oppose 
their inclination. But he was now twelve-hundred miles 
from Quito ; and in that long march the Spaniards encoun- 
tered hardships, greater than those which they had endured 
in their progress outward, without the alluring hopes by which 
they were then soothed and animated under their sufferings. 
Hunger compelled them to feed on roots and berries, to eat 
all their dogs and horses, to devour the most loathsome rep- 
tiles, and even to gnaw the leather of their saddles and sword- 
belts. Four-thousand Indians, and two-hundred-and-ten Spa- 
niards perished in this wild, disastrous expedition, which 
continued nearly two years ; and, as fifty men were on board 
the bark with Orellana, only eighty returned to Quito. These 
were naked like savages, and so emaciated with famine, or 
worn out with fatigue, that they had more the appearance of 
spectres, than of men. 

But, instead of returning to enjoy the repose which his 
condition required, Pizarro, on entering Quito, received ac- 
counts of a fatal event which threatened calamities more 
dreadful to him than those through which he had passed. 
From the time that his brother made that partial division of 
his conquests which has been mentioned^ the adherents of 
Almagro, considering themselves as proscribed by the party 
in power, no longer entertained any hope of bettering their 
condition. Great numbers in despair resorted to Lima, where 
the house of young Almagro was always open to them, and 
the slender portion of his father's fortune, which the gover- 
nor allowed him to enjoy, was spent in affording them sub- 
sistence. The warm attachment, with which every person 
who had served under the elder Almagra devoted himself to 
his interests, was quickly transferred to his son, who was now 
grown up to the age of manhood, and possessed all the qua- 
lities which captivate the affections of soldiers. In this 
young man, the Almagrians found a point of union, and, 
looking up to him as their head, were ready to undertake any 
thing for his advancement. Herrada, an officer of great 
abilities, who had the charge of Almagro's education, direct- 
ed their consultations. 

On Sunday, the 26th of June, at mid-day, the season of 



HISTORY OF SOirra AMERICA. 237 

tranquility and repose in sultry climates, Herrada, at the head 
of eighteen of the most determined conspirators, sallied out 
of Almagro's house, in complete armour ; and, drawing their 
swords, as they advanced hastily towards the governor's pa- 
lace, cried out, " Long live the king, but let the tyrant die !" 
Their associates, warned of their motions by a signal, were 
in arms, at different stations, ready to support them. Though 
Pizarro was usually surrounded by as numerous a train of at- 
tendants, as suited the magnificence of the most opulent sub- 
ject of the age in which he lived, yet, as he had just risen 
from table, and most of his domestics had retired to their 
own apartments, the conspirators passed through the two 
outer courts of the palace, unobserved. They were at the 
bottom of the stair-case, before a page in waiting could give 
the alann to his master, who w^as conversing with a few friends, 
in a large hall. The governor, whose steady mind no form; 
of danger could appal, starting up, called for arms ; and com- 
manded Francisco de Chaves to fasten the door. But that 
officer, who did not retain so much presence of^mind as to 
obey this prudent order, running to the top of the stair-case, 
wildly asked the conspirators what they meant, and whither 
they were going. Instead of answering, they stabbed him, 
to the heart, and burst into the hall. Some of the persons 
who were there, threw themselves from the windows; others 
attempted to fly ; and a few, drawing their swords, followed 
their leader into an inner apartment. The conspirators, ani- 
mated with having the object of their vengeance now in 
■view, rushed forward after them. Pizarro, with no other 
arms than his sword and buckler, defended the entry, and, 
supported by his half-brother Alcantara, and his little knot of 
friends, he maintained the unequal contest with intrepidity 
worthy of his vast exploits, and with the vigour of a youth- 
ful combatant. " Courage," cried he, " companions, we are 
yet enough to make those traitors repent of their audacity." 
But the armour of the conspirators protected them, while 
every thrust they made took effect. Alcantara fell dead at 
his brother's feet ; his other defenders were mortally wound- 
ed. Pizarro, so exhausted that he could hardly wield his 
sword, and no longer able to parry the many weapons fu- 
riously aimed at him, received a deadly thrust in his throat, 
sunk to the ground, and expired. 

As soon as he w^as slain, the assassins ran out into the 
streets, and, waving their bloody swords, proclaimed the death 



238 fflSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. , 

of the tyrant. Above two-hundred of their associates har-^l 
ing joined them, they conducted young Almagro in solemn 
procession through the city, and, assembling the magistrates 
and principal citizens, compelled them to acknowledge him 
as lawful successor to his father, in his government. The 
palace of Pizarro, together with the houses of several of his 
adherents, were pillaged by the soldiers, who had the satis- 
faction at once of being avenged on their enemies, and of 
enriching themselves by the spoils of those through whose 
hands all the wealth of Peru had passed. 

The boldness and success of the conspiracy, as well as the 
name and popular qualities of Almagro, drew many soldiers 
to his standard. Every adventurer of desperate fortune, all 
who were dissatisfied with Pizarro — and, from the rapacious- 
ness of his government in the latter years of his life, the 
number of malcontents was considerable — declared, without 
hesitation, in favour of Almagro, and he was soon at the head 
of eight-hundred of the most gallant veterans in Peru. As 
his youth and inexperience disqualified him from taking the 
command of them himself, he appointed Herrada to act as 
general. But though Almagro speedily collected so respect- 
able a force, the acquiescence in his government was far from 
being general. Pizarro had left many friends to whom his 
memory was dear; the barbarous assassination of a man to 
whom his country was so highly indebted, filled every impar- 
tial person with horror. The ignominious birth of Almagro, 
as well as the doubtful title on w^hich he founded his preten- 
sions, led others to consider him as a usurper. The officers 
who commanded in some provinces, refused to recognise his 
authority, until it was confirmed by the emperor. In others, 
particularly at Cuzco, the royal standard was erected, and 
preparations were begun, in order to revenge the murder of 
their ancient leader. 

Thus, have we related, with a brevity conformable with our 
design, the Discovery of the New World by Columbus, and 
the subsequent achievements of the Spanish adventurers, 
concluding with the Conquest of Peru. — To pursue the nar- 
rative through all the various revolutions caused by the ambi- 
tious spirit of the several leaders, who, in rapid succession, 
Boon afterwards rose upon the ruin of their conquered rivals, 
would be not only tedious, but uninteresting. Almagro did 
not long survive the assassination of Francis Pizarro : having 
been defeated and taken prisoner by the new governor, Vaco 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA 23^ 

de Castro, he was beheaded : Gonzalo Pizarro, together with 
Carvajal, suffered the same fate ; while Ferdinand Pizarro 
remained a state prisoner in Spain. 

During those violent convulsions in Peru, Charles V. and 
his ministers were employed in preparing regulations, by 
which they hoped not only to re-establish tranquility therCj 
but to introduce a more efficient system of internal policy 
with all their settlements in the new world. Rapid and ex- 
tensive as had been the Spanish conquests in America, they 
were not conducted by any regular extortion of the national 
force, but by the occasional efforts of private adventurers. 
After fitting out a few of the first armaments for discovering 
new regions, the court of Spain, during the busy reigns of 
Ferdinand and of Charles V. — the former the most intriguing 
prince of the age, the latter the most ambitious — was incum* 
bered with so great a multiplicity of schemes, and involved 
in war with so many nations of Europe, that it had not leisure 
to attend to distant and less interesting objects. The care 
of prosecuting discovery, or of attempting conquest, was 
abandoned to individuals; and, with such ardour did men 
push forward in this new career, on which novelty, the spirit 
of adventure, avarice, ambition, and the hope of meriting 
heaven, prompted them, with combined influence to enter, 
in less than half a century, almost the whole of that exten- 
sive empire which Spain, at the beginning of the nineteenth 
century possessed in the new world, was subjected to her do- 
minion. 



CHAPTER XIIL 

MISCELLANEOUS OBSERVATIONS. 

When compared with other parts of the New Worlds 
Mexico and Peru, at the time of their conquest by the Spa- 
niards, may be considered as polished states. But, if the 
comparison be made with the ancient continent, their infe- 
riority will be conspicuous ; and neither the Mexicans nor 
the Peruvians will be entitled to rank with those nations 



240 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

which merit the name of civilized. The people of both thS 
great empires in America, like the rude tribes around them, 
were wholly unacquainted with the useful metals ; and the 
progress made by them, in extending their dominion over the 
animal creation, was inconsiderable. The Mexicans had 
gone no farther, than to tame and rear turkeys and ducks, a 
species of small dogs and rabbits : they had no idea of at-* 
tempting to subdue the more robust animals, or of deriving 
any aid from their ministry, in prosecuting works of labour. 
The Peruvians seem to have neglected the inferior animals, 
not having domesticated any of them except the duck ; but 
they were more fortunate in taming the lama ; an animal pe- 
culiar to their country, of a form which bears some resem- 
blance to a deer, and some to a camel, and is in size rather 
larger than a sheep. Under the protection of man, this spe- 
cies multiplied greatly. Its wool furnished the Peruvians 
with clothing ; its flesh, with food. It was even employed as 
a beast of burthen, and carried a moderate load with much 
docility and patience. It was never used for draught ; and 
the breed being confined to the mountainous country, its ser- 
vicBj if we may judge by incidents which occur in the early 
Spanish writings, was not very extensive amongst the Peru* 
vians, in their original state. 

In tracing the line by which nations proceed towards civil- 
ization, the discovery of the useful metals, and the acquis!^ 
tion of dominion over the animal creation, have been marked 
as steps of capital importance in their progress. The Mexi- 
cans and Peruvians, Without a knowledge of the useful 
metals, or the aid of domestic animals, laboured under disad*- 
vantages, which must have greatly retarded their progress ; 
and, in their highest state of improvement, their power was 
so limited, and their operations so feeble, that they can 
scarcely be considered as having advanced beyond the in* 
fancy of civil life. 

Mexico was first subjected to the Spanish crown. But our 
acquaintance with its laws and manners, is not, from that cir- 
cumstance, more complete. Cortes, and the rapacious ad* 
venturers who accompanied him, had not leisure or capacity 
to enrich either civil or natural history with new observations* 
They undertook their expedition in quest of one object, and 
seemed hardly to have turned their eyes towards any other. 
It is rather from incidents which they relate occasionally, 
than from their own deductions and remarks, that we are ena* 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 241 

bled to form some idea of the genius and manners of that 
people. 

The obscurity in which the annals of Mexico were involv- 
ed, by the ignorance of its conquerors, was augmented by the 
superstition of those who succeeded them. As the memory 
of past events was preserved amongst the Mexicans, by figures 
painted on skins, on cotton-cloth, on a kind of paste-board, 
or on the bark of trees, the early missionaries, unable to com- 
prehend their meaning, and struck with their uncouth forms, 
conceived them to be monuments of idolatry, which ought to 
be destroyed, in order to facilitate the conversion of the In- 
dians. In obedience to an edict, issued by Juan de Zumma-^ 
raga, a Franciscan monk, the first bishop of Mexico, as many 
records of the ancient Mexican annals as could be collected, 
were committed to the flames. In consequence of this fana- 
tical zeal, whatever knowledge of remote events which mo- 
numents so rude contained, was almost entirely lost, and no 
information remained, concerning the ancient revolutions and 
policy of the empire, except what was derived from tradition, 
or from some fragments of their historical paintings that es- 
caped the barbarous researches of Zummaraga. 

According to the account of the Mexicans themselves^ 
their empire v/as not of long duration. Their country, as 
they relate, was rather possessed, than peopled, by small in- 
dependent tribes, whose mode of life and manners resembled 
those of the rudest savages that we have described. But, 
about a period corresponding to the beginning of the tenth 
century in the christian era, several tribes moved, in succes- 
sive migrations, from unknown regions towards the north and 
north-west, and settled in different provinces of Anahuac, 
the ancient name of New Spain. These, more civilized than 
the original inhabitants, began to form them to the arts of so- 
cial life. At length, towards the commencement of the thir- 
teenth century, the Mexicans, a people more polished than 
any of the former, advanced from the border of the Califor- 
nian gulf, and took possession of the plains adjacent to the 
great lake, near the centre of the country. After residing 
there about fifty years, they founded a town, since distin- 
guished by the name of Mexico, which, from humble begin- 
nings, soon grew to be the most considerable city in the new 
world. 

The Mexicans, long after they were established in their 
new possessions, continued, like other martial tribes in Ame- 
X 



242 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

rica, unacquainted with regal dominion ; and were governed 
iit peace, and conducted in war, by such as were entitled to 
pre-eminence by their wisdom or their valour. But the su- 
preme authority centred, at last, in a single person; and 
when the Spaniards, undfer Cortes, invaded the country, Mon- 
tezuma, as we have already stated, in a preceding chapter, 
was the ninth monarch in order, who had swayed the Mexi- 
can sceptre, not by hereditary right, but by election. 

Such, is the traditional tale of the Mexicans, concerning 
the progress of their own empire. According to this, its 
duration was very short. From the first migration of the 
parent tribe, they can reckon little more than three-hundred 
years : from the establishment of monarchal government, not 
above one-hundred-and-thirty years, according to one ac- 
count, or one-hundred-and-ninety-seven, according to another 
computation J had elapsed. 

In the Mexican empire, the right of private property was 
perfectly understoodj and established in its full extent. The 
distinction between property in lands, and property in goods j 
had taken place. Both might be transferred from one per* 
son to another, by sale or barter: both might descend by 
inheritance* Every person who could be denominated a 
freeman^ had property in land. This, however, they held by 
various tenures. Some possessed it in full right, and could 
transmit it to their heirs. The titles of others to their lands 
was derived from the office or dignity which they enjoyed ; 
and when deprived of the latter, they lost possession of the 
former. Both these modes of occupying land, was deemed 
noble, and peculiar to citizens of the highest class. The 
tenure by which the great body of the people held their 
lands, was very different. In evety district^ a certain quan- 
tity of land was measured out, in proportion to the number 
of families* This was cultivated by the joint labour of the 
whole : its produce was deposited in a common store-house, 
and divided amongst them, according to their respective 
wants* 

Another striking circumstance, which distinguishes the 
Mexican empire from those countries in America which we 
have already described, is the number and greatness of its 
cities. On entering New Spain ^ the Spaniards were aston* 
ished to find the natives residing in towns so extensive that 
they resembled those of Europe. Zempoala, Tlascala, and 
Cholula J Tacuba, Tezeuco, and Mexico, they compared with 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 243 

tiie cities of the greatest note in their own country; and, 
from their accounts, we can hardly suppose the latter to have 
contained fewer than sixty-thousand inhabitants. 

The separation of professions amongst the Mexicans, is a 
symptom of improvement, no less remarkable. The func- 
tions of the mason, the weaver, the goldsmith, the painter, 
and of several other crafts, were carried on by different per- 
sons. Each was regularly instructed in his calling. To it 
alone, his industry was confined ; and, by assiduous applica- 
tion to one object, their artizans attained a high degree of 
neatness ^nd perfection in work, far beyond what could have 
been expected from the rude tools which they employed. 
Their various productions became articles of commerce ; and 
by their exchange in the stated markets held in the cities, 
not only w^re their mutual wants supplied, in such orderly 
intercourse as characterizes an improved state of society, but 
their industry was daily rendered persevering and inventive. 

The distinction of rank, established in the Mexican em- 
pire, is the next circumstance that m^erits attention. The 
great body of the people were in a most humiliating state. 
A considerable number, known by the name of mayeques, 
nearly resembled in condition those peasants, who, under 
various denominations, were considered, during the preva- 
lence of the feudal system in Europe, as instruments of la- 
bour attached to the soil. The mayeques could not change 
their place of residence, without permission of the superior 
on whom they depended. They were conveyed, together 
with the lands on which they were settled, like the boors, at 
the present day, in Russia, from one proprietor to another, 
and were bound to cultivate the ground, and to perform va- 
rious kinds of servile work. Others were reduced to the lowest 
form of subjection, that of domestic servitude, and felt the 
utmost rigour-t)f that wretched state. Their condition was 
held to be so vile, that a person who killed one of these 
slaves was not subjected to any punishment. — The nobles, 
possessed of ample territories, were divided into various 
classes, to each of which belonged peculiar titles of honour. 
Some of these titles, like their lands, descended from father 
to son, in perpetual succession. Others were annexed to 
particular offices, or conferred, during life, as marks of per- 
sonal distinction. 

Thus, the distinction of ranks was completely established, 
in a liae of regular subordination, reaching from the highest 



2^4: HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

to the lowest member of the community. Each of these 
knew what he could claim, and what he owed. The people, 
who were not allowed to wear a dress of the same fashion, or 
to dwell in houses of a form similar to those of the nobles, 
accosted them with the most submissive reverence. In the 
presence of their sovereign, they durst not lift their eyes 
from the ground, or look him in the face. The nobles them- 
selves, when admitted to an audience of their sovereigns, 
entered bare-footed, and, as his slaves, paid him homage, 
approaching ta adoration. This respect, due from inferior, 
to those above them in rank, was prescribed with so cere- 
monious accuracy, that it incorporated with the language, 
and influenced its genius and idiom. The Mexican language 
abounded in expressions of reverence and courtesy. The 
style and appellations, used in the intercourse between 
equals, would have been so unbecoming in the mouth of one 
in a lower sphere, when he accosted a person in higher rank, 
as to be deemed an insult.* 

Their mode of computing time may be considered as a 
more decisive evidence of their progress in improvement. 
They divided the year into eighteen months, each consisting 
of twenty days, amounting, in all, to three hundred-and-sixty. 
i>st, as they observed that the course of the sun was not 
completed in that time, they added five days to the year. 
These, which were properly intercalary days, they termed 
supe7mumerary, or vjaste ; and, as they did not belong to any 
month, no work was done, and no sacred rite performed on 
them. They were devoted wholly to festivity and pastime. 

Such, are the most striking particulars in the manners and 
policy of the Mexicans, which exhibit them to view as a 
people considerably refined. But, from other circumstances, 
we cannot avoid suspecting, that their character, and many 
of their institutions^ did not differ greatly from those of the 
other inhabitants of America. 

* The Mexican is the only language, in which a termination indicating' 
respect, may be affixed to every word. By adding the syllable zin or azin 
to any word, it becomes a proper expression of veneration in the mouth of • 
an inferior. If, in speaking to an equal, the word Father is to be used, it 
is Tail; but an inferior says Tatzin. One priest speaking to another^ 
calls him Teopixque ;■ a person of inferior rank calls him Teopixcatzin. 
The name of the emperor who reigned when Cortes invaded Mexico, was 
Montezuma ; but his vassals, from reverence, pronounced it Montezuma- 
zin. The Mexicans had not only reverential nouns, but reverential verbs., 
— ^ee Guevara's Me:^ican Grammar, 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 245 

Like the rude tribes around them, the Mexicans were in- 
cessantly engaged in war ; and the motives which prompted 
them to hostility seem to have been the same. They fought 
in order to gratify their vengeance, by shedding the blood of 
their enemies. In battle, they were intent chiefly on taking 
prisoners, and it was by the number of these that they esti- 
mated the glory of victory. Their funeral rites were not less 
bloody than those of the most savage tribes. On the death 
of any distinguished personage, especially of the emperor, a 
certain number of his attendants were chosen to accompany 
him to the other world ; and those unfortunate victims were 
put to death without mercy, and buried in the same tomb. 

The empire of Peru boasts of a higher antiquity than that 
of Mexico. According to the traditionary accounts collected 
by the Spaniards, it had subsisted four-hundred years, under 
twelve successive monarchs. But the knowledge of their 
ancient history which the Peruvians could communicate to 
their conquerors, must have been both imperfect and uncer- 
tain. Like the other American nations, they were wholly 
unacquainted with the art of writing, and therefore destitute 
of the only means by which the memory of past transactions 
can, with any degree of accuracy, be preserved. 

The quipos, or knots on cords, of different colours, cele- 
brated by authors fond of the marvellous, as if they had been 
regular annals of the empire, imperfectly supplied the place 
of writing. According to the obscure description of them,, 
by Acosta, the quipos seem to have been a devi-ce for render- 
ing calculation more expeditious and accurate. By the va- 
rious colours, different objects were denoted ; and by each 
knot a distinct number. Thus, an account was taken, and a 
kind of register kept, of the inhabitants in each province, 
or of the several productions collected there for public use. 
But, as by these knots, however varied or combined, no moral 
or abstract idea, no operation or quality of the mind, could 
be represented, they contributed, little towards preserving the 
memory of ancient events and institutions. 

The most singular and striking circumstance in the Peru- 
vian government, is the influence of religion upon its genius 
and laws. Amongst the Mexicans, religion, reduced into a 
regular system^ and holding a considerable place in their 
public institutions, operated, with conspicuous efficacy, in 
forming the peculiar character of that people. But in Peru,, 
the whole system of policy was founded on religion* The 
x2 



^46 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

Inca appeared. not only as a legislator, but as the messenger 
of heaven. His precepts were received, not merely as the 
injunctions of a superior, but as the mandates of the Deity. 
His race was to be held sacred ; and, in order to preserve it 
distinct, and unpolluted by any mixture of less noble blood, 
the sons of Manco Capac married their own sisters, and no 
person was ever admitted to the throne, wlio could not claim 
it by so pure a descent- To those Children of the Sun- — for 
that was the appellation conferred upon all the offspring of 
the first Inca — -the people looked up with the reverence due 
to beings of a superior order. The persons of highest rank 
and highest power in their dominions, acknowledged them to 
be of a more exalted nature ; and, in testimony of this, when 
admitted into their presence, they entered with a burthen on 
their shoulders, as an emblem of their servitude, and wil- 
lingness to bear whatever the Inca was pleased to impose, 
ilmongst their subjects, force was not requisite to second their 
commands. Every officer intrusted with their execution was 
revered, and might proceed, alone, from one extremity of the 
empire to another, without paeeting opposition ; for, on pro- 
ducing a fringe from the royal borla, an ornament of the 
head, peculiar to the reigning Inca, the lives and fortunes of 
the people were at his disposal. 

Another consequence of establishing government in Peru 
on the foundation of religion, was, that all crimes were pun- 
ished with death. They were not considered as transgressions 
of human laws, but as insults offered to the Deity. Each, 
without any distinction of such as were slight, and such as 
were atrocious, called for vengeance, and could be expiated 
only by the blood of the offender. But the Peruvians, of 
simple manners and unsuspicious faith, v/ere held in so great 
awe by this rigid discipline, that the number of offenders was 
extremely small. 

" The system of superstition," observes a philosophical his- 
torian, " on which the Incas ingrafted their pretensions to so 
high authority, was of a genius very different from that esta- 
blished amongst the Mexicans. Manco Capac turned the at- 
tention of his followers, entirely towards natural objects. 
The Sun^ as the great source of light, of joy, and fertility in 
the creation, attracted their principal homage. The Moon 
and the Stars, as co-operating with him, were entitled to se- 
condary honours. Wherever the propensity in the human 
mind to acknowledge and to adore some superior power, takes: 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 247 

this direction, and is employed in contemplating the order 
and beneficence that really exist in natm-e, the spirit of su- 
perstition is mild. Wherever imaginary beings, created by the 
fancy and the fears of men, are supposed to preside in nature, 
and become the object of worship, superstition always assumes 
a more severe and atrocious form. Of the latter, we have 
an example amongst the Mexicans ; of the former, amongst 
the people of Peru. The Peruvians had not, indeed, made 
such progress in observation or inquiry, as to have attained 
just conceptions of the Deity ; nor was there, in their lan- 
guage, any proper name or appellation of the Supreme Pow- 
er, which intimated that they had formed any idea of him as: 
the creator and governor of the world. But, by directing 
their veneration to that glorious luminary, which, by its uni- 
versal and vivifying energy, is the best emblem of divine be- 
neficence, the rites and observances which they deemed ac- 
ceptable to him were innocent and humane. They offered 
to the Sun a part of their productions which his genial warmth 
had called forth from the bosom of the earth, and reared to 
maturity. They sacrificed, as an oblation of gratitude, some 
of the animals which were indebted to his influence for nou- 
rishment. They presented to him choice specimens of those 
works of ingenuity, which his light had guided the hand of 
man in forming. But the Incas never stained his altars with 
human blood, nor could they conceive that their beneficent 
father, the Sun, would be delighted with such horrid victims." 

Even the wars in which the Incas engaged, were conducted 
with a spirit very different from that of other American na- 
tions. They fought not like savages, to destroy and exter- 
minate ; or, like the Mexicans, to glut blood-thirsty divinities 
with human sacrifices. They conquered, in order to reclaim 
and civilize the vanquished, and to diffuse the knowledge of 
their own institutions and arts. 

The state of property in Peru, was no less singular than 
that of religion, and contributed, likewise, in giving a mild 
turn of character to the people. All the lands, capable of 
cultivation, were divided into three shares. One was conse- 
crated to the Sun, and the product of it was applied to the 
erection of temples, and furnishing what was requisite for 
celebrating the public rites of religion. The second belong- 
ed to the Incas, and was set apart as the provision made by 
the community for the support of government. The third, 
and largest share, was reserved for the maintenance of th^. 



248 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

people, amongst whom it was divided. Neither individuals^ 
however, nor communities, had a right of exclusive property 
in the portion set apart for their use. Like the ancient Ger- 
mans, they possessed it only for a year, at the expiration of 
which a new division was made, in proportion to the rank, 
the number, and the exigencies of each family. A.11 those 
lands were cultivated by the joint industry of the community. 
The people, summoned by a proper officer, repaired, in a body, 
to the fields, and performed their common task, while songs 
and musical instruments cheered them to their labour. 

The distinction of ranks was fully established in Peru. A 
great body of the inhabitants, under the denomination of 
Yanaconas, were held in a state of servitude. Their garb 
and their houses were of a form different from those of free- 
men. Like the Tamenes of Mexico, they were employed 
in carrying burthens, and in performing every other work of 
drudgery. Next to them in rank, were such of the people 
as were free, but distinguished by no official or hereditary 
honours. Above them, were raised those whom the Spaniards 
called Orejones, from the ornaments worn in their ears. They 
formed what may be denominated the order of nobles, and in 
peace as well as in war, held every office of power or trust. 
At the head of all, were the Children of the Sun, who, by 
their high descent, and peculiar privileges, were as much ex- 
alted above the Orejones, as these were elevated above the 
people. 

Those distinctions in ranks were favourable to the progress 
of the arts. But the Spaniards^ having been acquainted with 
the improved state of various arts in Mexico, several years 
before they discovered Peru, were not so much struck with 
what they observed in the latter country, and describe the 
appearance of ingenuity there with less warmth of admira- 
tion. The Peruvians, nevertheless, had advanced far beyond 
the Mexicans, both in the necessary arts of life, and in such 
as have some title to the name of elegant. 

In Peru, agriculture was more extensive, and more skil- 
fully conducted, than in any other part of America, But the 
use of the plough was unknown to the Peruvians. They 
turned up the earth with a kind of mattock, made of hard 
wood. Nor was this labour deemed so degrading, as to be 
assigned wholly to the women. . Both sexes joined in per- 
forming this necessary work. Even the Children of the Sun 
set an example of industry, by cultivating a field near Cuzca 



fflSTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 24& 

with their own hands, and they dignified this function by de- 
nominating it " their triumph over the earth." 

The superior ingenuity of the Peruvians, is obvious, like- 
wise, in the construction of their dwelling-houses and public 
buildings. The former were generally of a square form, the 
walls about eight feet high, built with bricks hardened in the 
fire, without any windows, and the doors lov/ and strait. But 
it was in the temples dedicated to the Sun, and in the build- 
ings destined for the residence of their monarchs, that the 
Peruvians displayed the utmost extent of their art and con- 
trivance. They appear to have been edifices various in their 
dimensions. Some were of a moderate size ; many, of im- 
mense extent ; all, remarkable for solidity, and resembling 
each other in the style of their architecture. The temple 
of Pachacmac, together with a palace of the Inca, and a for* 
tress, were so connected, as to form one great structure, above 
half a league in circuit. 

These, however, were not the noblest or most useful works 
of the Incas. The two great roads from Cuzco to Quito, ex- 
tending, in an uninterrupted line, above fifteen-hundred miles, 
are entitled to still higher praise. Eminences were levelled, 
and hollows filled up ; and, for their preservation, they were 
fenced with a bank of turf. At proper distances, tambos, or 
store-houses were erected, for the accommodation of the In» 
ca and his attendants, in their progress through his dominions. 

The formation of those roads introduced another improve- 
ment in Peru, equally unknown over all the rest of America. 
In its course from north to south, the road of the Incas was 
intersected by all the torrents which roll from the Andes 
towards the Pacific Ocean, From the rapidity of their course, 
as well as from the frequency and violence of their inunda- 
tion, these were not fordable. Some expedient, however, 
was to be found for passing them. They formed cables of 
great strength, by twisting together pliable withs or osiers : 
six of these cables, they stretched across the stream, parallel 
to one another, and made them fast on each side. These, 
they bound firmly together, by interweaving smaller ropes, 
so closely, as to form a compact piece of net-work, which 
being covered with branches of trees and earth, they passed 
along it with tolerable security. Proper persons were ap- 
pointed to attend at each bridge, to keep it in repair, and to 
assist passengers. In the level country, where the rivers 
became deep, and broad, and still, they were passed in baU. 



250 HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

zas, or rafts ; in the construction, as well as navigation of 
which, the ingenuity of the Peruvians appears to have been 
far superior to that of any other people in America. The 
other nations had advanced no farther in naval skill, than the 
use of the paddle, or oar : the Peruvians ventured to raise a 
mast, and spread a sail, by means of which their balzas not 
only went nimbly before the wind, but could also veer and 
tack. 

Ncr were the ingenuity and art of the Peruvians confined 
solely to objects of essential utility. They had made some 
progress in arts which may be termed elegant. They pos- 
sessed the precious metals in greater abundance than any 
other of the Indian nations. They had discovered the art of 
smelting and refining these, either by the simple application 
of fire, or, where the ore was more stubborn, and impreg- 
nated with foreign substances, by placing it in small ovena 
or furnaces, on high grounds, so artificially constructed, that 
the draught of air performed the function of bellows, an en- 
gine with which they were totally unacquainted. 

In works of mere curiosity or ornament, their ingenuity 
has been highly celebrated. Many specimens of those have 
been dug out of the guacas^ or moundis of ©arth, with which 
the Peruvians covered the bodies of the dead. Amongst 
these, are mirrors of various dimensions, of hard, shining 
stones, highly polished ; vessels of earthenware, of different 
forms ; hatchets, and other instruments ; some destined for 
war, and , others for labour. Some were of flint, some of 
copper, hardened to such a degree, by a process noAv unknown, 
as, on several occasions, to supply the place of iron. Had 
the use of those tools formed of copper been general, the 
progress of the Peruvians in the arts might have been such, 
as to emulate that of more cultivated nations. But either 
the metal was so rare, or the operation by which it was 
hardened so tedious, that their instruments of copper were 
few, and so extremely small, that they seem to have been 
employed only in works of a slight kind. 



History of south America. 251 



CHAPTER XIV. 

HISTORY OF THE DESCENDANTS OP COLUMBUS THE MALE LINE 

BECOMES EXTINCT, AND THE DIGNITIES AND WEALTH OF THE 
GREAT DISCOVERER, PASS INTO A BRANCH OF THE FAMILY 
OF BRAGANZA. 

When Don Diego Columbus died, his wife and family 
were at St. Domingo.* He left two sons — Luis and Chris- 
topher ; and three daughters — Maria, who afterwards married 
Don Sancho de Cordona ; Juana, who married Don Luis de 
Cueva ; and Isabella, who married Don George of Portugal, 
Count of Guelves. 

After the death of Don Diego, his spirited vice-queen, left 
with a number of young children, endeavoured to assert and 
maintain the rights of her family. She accordingly sailed for 
Spain, to protect the claim of her eldest son, Don Luis, then 
six years of age. Charles V., who succeeded his grandfather 
on the throne of Spain, in 1516, was then absent from the 
kingdom, but she was most graciously received by the ena- 
press. The title of " Admiral of the Indies" was immediately 
conferred upon Don Luis, and the emperor augmented his 
revenues, and conferred other favours upon the family* 
Charles, however, could never be prevailed on to give Don 
Luis the title of viceroy, although he had passed a decree 
some years previous to the death of his father, recognizing 
his right to that dignity. Finally, in 1540, Don Luis relin* 
quished all pretensions to the vice-royalty of the new world, 
receiving, in its stead, the titles of Duke of Veragua and 
Marquis of Jamaica. He commuted also the claim to a tenth 
of the produce of the Indies, for a pension of one-thousand 
doubloons of gold. 

Don Luis did not long survive this commutation. He died 
shortly afterwards, leaving no other male issue than an ille- 
gitimate son, named Christopher. He left two daughters by 
his wife. Donna Maria de Mosquera ; one named Phillippa, 
and the other Maria, who became a nun in the convent of 
St» QuircC) at Valladolid. 

♦ See note, p. 76* 



952 



HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 



Don Luis, having no legitimate son, was succeeded by his 
nephew Diego, son to his brother Christopher. Diego, who 
married his cousin Phillippa, died, without issue, in 1578 ; 
and with him the legitimate male line of Columbus became 
extinct. 

One of the most important law-suits now arose, that the 
world had ever witnessed, for the estates and dignities de- 
scended from Columbus. Not fewer claimants appeared, 
than in the time of Bruce, contended for the Scottish throne* 
The cause was finally decided in 1608. The male line was 
declared to be extinct. Don Nuno Guelves de Portugallo was 
put in possession, and became Duke of Veragua. He was a 
grandson of Isabella^ third daughter of Don Diego (son of the 
discoverer) by his vice-queen Donna Maria de Toledo. 

The descendants of the two eldest sisters of Isabella had a 
prior claim, but their lines became extinct, previous to the 
decision of the process. The Isabella just named had mar- 
ried Don George of Portugal^ Count of Guelves ; and thus the 
dignities and wealth of Columbus passed into a branch of the 
Portuguese house of Braganza, established in Spain. 

Fernando Columbus, the illegitimate son and the historian 
of the admirals died at Seville, unmarried and without issue, 
on the 12th of July, 1539, in his fifty-first year. 



THE END. 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



015 839 538 1 



